TOKYO, Feb 2 (NNN-NHK) – The ratio of job availability in Japan declined for the third straight year in 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted companies to provide fewer job openings, government statistics showed, yesterday.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the figure stood at 1.13, which means 113 openings for every 100 job seekers, down 0.05 point, compared to the previous year, following a 0.42-point plunge in 2020.
The number of job seekers stood at 1.9 million last year, up 6.6 percent, including full-time homemakers, trying to make up for shrinking family incomes, due to the economic fallout from the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the number of Job offers only increased 1.6 percent to 2.2 million.
The labour market was largely affected by the pandemic in 2021, with the Japanese government repeatedly declaring states of emergency for Tokyo and other areas, asking residents to avoid unnecessary outings and requesting eateries to close earlier.
The jobless rate in Japan stood at 2.8 percent in 2021, unchanged from the previous year, but higher than the 2.4-percent rate in 2019, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The number of non-regular workers fell 260,000 to 20.6 million, decreasing for the second consecutive year, as the restaurant industry, which employs a large number of non-regular workers, was hit hard by COVID-19.– NNN-NHK
