Japan Seeks to Boost Employment Opportunities for Seniors

Japan will take steps to increase employment opportunities for its senior population, based on findings that 8.62 million people 65 or older held jobs last year, reports Inquirer.net . A panel on a social security system for all generations chaired by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will discuss specific strategies, with plans to support companies' efforts to continue employing older adults. A poll by the Health, Labor, and Welfare Ministry found 25.8 percent of companies in 2018 had systems that allowed employees 70 or older to work, through measures like raising the mandatory retirement age or the age for continued employment. A government policy to promote employment of seniors was thus initiated. Employers are currently mandated to keep employing people who wish to work until age 65, but the plan directs companies to offer job opportunities until age 70 through continuing employment, extending the mandatory retirement age, or reemploying people at other companies. The government also plans to amend the Law on Stabilization of Employment of Elderly Persons in 2020. Companies are subsequently becoming more flexible, especially as knowledgeable seniors gain importance in the midst of a labor shortage.