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posted by n1 on Wednesday May 31 2017, @11:39AM   Printer-friendly
from the jobs-for-the-boys dept.

Submitted via IRC for TheMightyBuzzard

The labor shortage in Japan is at its highest in more than four decades, according to new government data. Low birth rates and an aging population have resulted in a shrinking workforce.

There are currently 1.48 jobs for every applicant, the highest figure since 1974 when fast growth drove the ratio to 1.53. The data outpaces the labor shortage peak in the early 1990s, during the country's period of economic stagnation.

[...] The analyst said the number of women and older people who have been joining the labor force has increased, as "the labor shortage is forcing companies to hire people who previously weren't looking for work."

Source: RT

[T]he number of families living on an income lower than the public welfare assistance level more than doubled in the 20 years after the asset price bubble popped in 1992, according to a study by Kensaku Tomuro of Yamagata University.

Now 16 percent of Japanese children live below the poverty line, according to Health Ministry statistics, but among single-parent families, the rate hits 55 percent. Poverty rates in Osaka are among the worst.

[...] Children of single or poor parents often are ostracized in their communities, Tokumaru said, noting that other parents do not want their children playing with children from a "bad house."

Source: The Washington Post


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  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by shrewdsheep on Wednesday May 31 2017, @02:25PM (1 child)

    by shrewdsheep (5215) on Wednesday May 31 2017, @02:25PM (#518297)

    Wages can't go anywhere but down, with decreasing local demand for goods and services from the decreasing population and the decreasing wages (yay, feedback loop)...Add those increasing taxes, and even people working in "good" jobs will eventually fall below the povery line.

    That's a common fallacy. Falling GDP does not imply falling wages. Wages are related to productivity and demand/supply. Both factors are favoring higher wages in Western countries in the long run.

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  • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 31 2017, @07:43PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 31 2017, @07:43PM (#518481)

    Agree that falling GDP does not necessitate falling wages, but wages haven't been following productivity to any meaningful degree for decades.