Labour shortage impacts more than half of companies in Japan

The ageing population, coupled with the recovery of the economy, has caused more than half of 11,000 firms in Japan to experience a labour crunch.
By: | November 15, 2022
Topics: Japan | News | Recruitment

This was according to a survey by Teikoku Databank in which 50.1% of respondents said they felt a labour crunch, the first time a majority expressed that view since November 2019.

Eased border controls and the government’s travel discount programme to boost tourism have raised hopes for a further industry recovery, but some firms were also concerned that they may not be able to cater to market demand due to the labour shortage, according to Teikoku Databank.

About 30.4% of businesses also said there was a shortage of non-regular workers. Eateries and the hospitality sector, which traditionally have higher ratios of non-regular workers, were particularly hard hit at 77.3% and 62.3%, respectively. 

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For full-time employees, the crunch was most notably felt by the information services sector at 71.3%, followed by recruitment at 65.0%, and maintenance and security industries at 64.6%. 

Teikoku Databank conducted the survey between September 15 and 30, and received valid responses from 11,621 companies, reported Kyodo News.