Japan’s unemployment rate climbs to 2.6% while labor crunch deepens

The Japanese Government made public the jobless rate in the country for June 2018 and the data hold a mirror up to the changes the Japanese work market is facing: while the unemployment rate roses by 0.2%, Japan is fighting a major workers shortage in key areas such as manufacturing or logistics. The seasonally adjusted rate exceeds the expectations made by the Ministry of Communication and Internal Affairs, whose experts forecast to reach a 2.3% rate. The trend shows that there is a large number of people who willingly left their work in order to look for greater opportunities - from the 1.66 million people who are looking for a job in Japan right now, around 700,000 of them voluntarily quit their employment to find a better position. In a country where staying in the same job during your whole professional life is widely considered as a sign of commitment and loyalty, these data can be interpreted as a warning for the companies, which will have to invest more to recruit and secure their employees. 

Although the number of job seekers increased last month, the job-to-applicant proportion stood at 1.62 from May's 1.60 rates - the highest level in 44 years. That means there are 1.62 open positions available for each job seeker, which highlights the evident urge of workforce throughout the country.

As the country is suffering from a pronounced ageism, Japan needs to find solutions to stop the workers shortage. One of the strategies adopted by the Government to tackle this situation is to open its doors to foreign talents. Japan aims to attract 500,000 foreigner workers by 2025 and, for achieving so, it is implementing a wide range of new regulations that will come to force in the following months: suitability exams, new visa statuses and increasing the minimum hourly wage. Hopefully, these strategies will draw more talented expats to Japan and balance the labor crisis.

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