PUBLIC POLICY
Vol.35-No.03 March 1,1996
Eighth Basic Plan on Employment Measures
On December 14, 1995, the Economic Council submitted its recommendations on employment policies, which extend to fiscal 2000, to the Minister of Labour. In the Eighth Basic Plan for Employment Measures, which constitutes new medium- and long-term employment policy guidelines, the advisory panel to the Minister of Labour stresses job creation and consolidation of the labor market. It is believed that these measures will enable Japanese workers to smoothly change jobs, in order to avert higher unemployment due to changing industrial structure. The advisory panel's report also incorporates expansion and strengthening of vocational ability development so that workers may take jobs as they wish. Restrictions under the Labour Standards Law prohibiting women from doing late night work should be removed, except for the clause regarding the protection of mothers, the panel also clearly states in the report.
The new mid- and long-term employment policy guidelines are characterized by the assertion that labor mobility among enterprises and industries is expected to increase because of changing industrial structure stemming from globalization and informationalization as well as because of the shrinking number of young people brought on by greying of the population. To prevent unemployment resulting from higher labor mobility, the panel stresses the need to provide subsidies for wages and training expenses to companies under the Law Concerning Security of Labour Force for Small and Medium Enterprises. Also, it stresses the need for the private sector to make active use of the know-how on job placement which is the province of public employment security offices(PESOs). Specifically, the panel recommends the present job placement system should be reviewed and areas of activities for private employment agencies should be expanded, showing its stance of moving toward minimizing joblessness and shortening of the unemployment period through structuring a labor market which allows for smooth job change.
Meanwhile, the Subcommittee on Deregulation of the Administrative Reform Committee, on December 7, presented a report calling for promotion plans for fiscal 1995. In the report, the Subcommittee clearly states that it is necessary to switch drastically away from the conventional system under which the government adjusts supply and demand of the work force as a rule and allows some private employment placement agencies as an exception to find jobs for workers, toward one in which private job agencies make efficient use of their creativity, flexibility and diversity - by relaxation in principle the restrictions on dispatching manpower, for instance. But this does not deny the need for PESOs, it says, stressing the need for PESOs to help find employment for workers free of charge and offer better services as part of the public infrastructure. In addition, the Subcommittee positively evaluates expansion of new flexible employment forms such as flexitime, the discretionary work system, the home based work system and the satellite office system, in order to enable workers to give full play to their autonomy, creativity and to achieve a balance between family life and work.
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