The Japanese labor market stands at a significant turning point, having undergone a number of significant changes in recent years, such as an acceleration of population shrinkage, declining birthrate, and aging population, advancement of the reform of working practices, change in work style due to the pandemic, increased importance of DX (digital transformation), and rapid evolution of generative AI.

Particularly, the acceleration of population shrinkage, declining birthrate, and aging population, is one of the most serious issues in Japan as well as one of the most difficult issues to solve. The total population of Japan has entered a long-term decline and is expected to fall below 100 million by 2053. Likewise, the country’s labor population is projected to drop from 69.02 million in 2022 to 60.02 million in 2040. Almost daily, there is news of labor shortages, and more and more companies are facing the issue of hiring and securing human resources necessary for continuing their business.

Meanwhile, there is a growing awareness of the need for career and competence development among temporary workers and other employees as it is becoming more difficult to look into the future, and an increasing number of the workforce engage proactively in career development to build career self-reliance.

Given such circumstances, the temporary staffing industry, in which we operate, has a view that there is a need to further enhance the reskilling of temporary workers and facilitate the movement of labor to growth areas. It is the temporary staffing industry that can support temporary staff to enhance their capacities through reskilling programs and find them jobs in digital and other growth areas, thus enabling temporary workers to build their careers and companies to improve their performance. As such, the industry not only contributes to solving issues faced by the employment and labor market but to the sustainable growth of Japan as well.

As a staffing expert, JASSA is committed to building a society where workers are able to envision their future plans, including their careers, develop their skills, and feel empowered and happy at work. To achieve this commitment, we will continue to collaborate and join forces with all stakeholders.

June 2024