Some companies are providing “inflation allowances” to help employees cope with rising consumer prices as labour officials call for more permanent support.
It identified young employees, workers with children, and non-permanent employees as those who are most vulnerable to inflation.
This comes as employers looked to hire in preparation for a rebound in inbound tourism as the pandemic-related daily arrival cap is removed.
Such digital wallets will have a maximum balance of 1 million yen, and employees can use the funds to make purchases or remittances directly.
Remote employees are able to spend more time with their families, sleep better, and experience less stress from commuting to the office.
Commuting patterns have not returned to pre-COVID levels as organisations continue to offer hybrid work.
Working remotely allows employees to sleep better and feel satisfied if they balance telework and office work appropriately.
As part of efforts to help child-rearing parents, the prefecture of Miyagi plans to grant government workers leave to take care of their grandchildren.
PM Fumio Kishida is asking employers to increase pay to keep up with inflation during wage negotiations next spring.
As of August, 67.51 million people were employed in Japan, of which almost a third are those not in formal employment.
Despite this, the gender wage gap between men and women remains significant, with last year’s average wage for women being about 45% lower than men’s.
The office space, opened on trial till the end of the year, has workstations for three employees and space for up to six dogs at any one time.
The prevalence of remote work is making companies in Japan revamp or revise their employee transfer systems.
Japan has the largest proportion of residents aged 65 and up in its population, with 25.1% continuing to work.
A bill that aims to provide more protection to freelance workers will be submitted to Japan’s parliament this autumn.
By the next fiscal year, companies may be allowed to digitally pay their employees’ wages to their cashless accounts.
Due to low unemployment and a stable job market, 2.9 million employees switched jobs in 2021, 630,000 fewer than in 2019.
Since 2021, the number of workers switching jobs dropped 310,000 to 2.9 million, marking a fall for the second consecutive year.
Most part-time workers are satisfied with their jobs, with flexible working hours cited as the main reason for wanting a part-time job.
Japan’s labour ministry says it confirmed cases of illegal overtime work at more than 10,000 business places across Japan in fiscal 2021.
Despite increasing wages, digitalisation is seen as the most popular strategy among Japanese firms to address the labour crunch.
Businesses are hesitant to raise wages amid the global economic outlook and increased risk of a global recession.
A survey among 100 leading corporations found that 81 of them have no issue with staff taking up a second job to boost income.
Despite the loss, Forrester expects the green economy to help make up for some losses as more countries commit to carbon neutrality.
While a record number of men took paternity leave in Japan last year, the figure still falls short of the government’s goal of reaching 30% by 2025.
The government wants firms to extend the practice of conducting human rights to their suppliers, clients, joint ventures and investment portfolios.
Japan’s unemployment rate June remained unchanged at 2.6%, down 0.3% year-on-year, with employment for non-regular workers rising by 0.9%.
The government has urged companies to raise wages on par with price hikes of around 2%, a level the central bank has set as its inflation target.
It aims to increase the number of startups in the country by 10 times over five years, further driving the nation’s economic growth.
About 25.6% of companies are heeding a government directive to allow employees to voluntarily work until they are 70 years old.
