Jobs
Japan’s Foreign Workforce Hits Record as Labor Crisis Deepens
Small businesses have been hit particularly hard by the labor shortage.
Photographer: Akio Kon/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The number of foreign workers in Japan reached a new high, underscoring the country’s growing reliance on people from overseas to address its chronic labor shortage.
Japan had a record 2.3 million foreign workers as of October 2024, marking a 12.4% increase from the previous year, according to labor ministry figures released Friday. The number of businesses employing at least one foreign worker also hit a record high of around 342,000, up 7.3% from a year ago, the report showed.