Population Decline and Foreign Workers

https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190710/p2g/00m/0dm/075000c

Japan has seen another decline in its population. Major centers; Osaka and Nagoya are especially challenged. At the same time, Japan has been attempting, through new immigration policies, to bring in more foreign workers. Also, as in Korea, Japanese young people, students seem unwilling to do certain types of work. The best example is the convenient stores, or conbinis in Japanese. In a recent trip to Japan, and visiting many conbinis, to buy and just to explore, I didn't see one Japanese young person, only international students and some older Japanese men who maybe were at the retirement age. Even visiting two different McDonald's and a Japanese fast food place, Mos Burger, there were mostly just older retired age workers at the stores. But the immigration policies, as with other areas related to Japan, seem to favor Japan, and not really making it easy for foreign workers to really enter Japan. Japan needs to find ways to make it easier for foreign workers to want to come and work in Japan.



© 2019 Tom Metts,  all rights reserved