The Japan Labor Flash
No.51
Email Journal December 1, 2005
Statistical Reports
Main Labor Economic Indicators
Current Topics
23.8 % of Households have No Savings
Cabinet Office Survey Shows That 90% of People Do Not Participate
in NPOs
Public Policies
Law Enacted to Assist The Disabled to Be More Independent
Revised Occupational Health and Safety Law Enacted to Strengthen
Measures against Overwork and Mental Health Problems
Public Policies
JAL Plans Wage Cuts; Carriers' Unions Hints at Strike over End
-of-Year Lump Sum Payments
No Female Directors at Japan's Six Leading Banks
Public Policies
Taxi Drivers' Frustration
Statistical Reports
-Main Labor Economic Indicators-
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/estatis/eshuyo/200512/index.htm
Current Topics
-23.8 % of Households have No Savings-
On November 2, the Central Council for Financial Services
Information (whose secretariat is the Bank of Japan) published
the results of its 2005 Public Opinion Survey on Household Financial
Assets and Liabilities. Of the households surveyed (41.1 percent
of the single-person households surveyed, and 22.8 percent of those
with more than one family member) 23.8 percent replied that they
had no savings. This is an increase of 0.9 percentage points over
last year's survey. The average financial assets of the households
surveyed overall, including those with no savings, amounted to 10.85
million yen, and the median, which gives a picture of the financial
situation of ordinary households, was four million yen.
By type of financial asset, savings and deposits (excluding postal
savings) accounted for the largest proportion, about 40 percent of
the whole, followed by postal savings (some 20 percent), with these
two types together accounting for some 60 percent.
The proportion of households with money borrowed stood at around
40 percent, more or less the same as in the previous year. The average
amount of money borrowed was 5.55 million yen overall, and the average
figure for those with outstanding debts was 14.52 million yen, both
showing an increase over last year.
US$=\119 (December 1, 2005）
-Cabinet Office Survey Shows That 90% of People Do Not Participate
in NPOs-
In October, the Cabinet Office published the results of its opinion
poll concerning NPOs (aimed at 3,000 persons aged 20 or above; valid
replies 62.1%). According to these, 91.8 percent of the persons
surveyed answered that they had not participated in any NPO activities
in the previous five years, the reasons being that they had no
motivation or opportunity (50.5%); no relevant information (29.6%);
no time (28.8%); no interest (19.1%); and so on.
Asked about ways of vitalizing NPO activities in the future, the
highest proportion, 46.3 percent, replied "NPOs themselves should
actively solicit the interest of the public", followed by "The
governmental administrative bodies should strengthen the fundamentals
necessary for NPO activities" (27.8%); "Workplaces and schools
should
encourage and support workers and students hoping to engage in such
activities" (22.7%); "A mechanism should be created to make
objective
evaluations of such activities" (18.7%); "Individual citizens
should
be more positive in participating in such activities" (17.6%); and
so on (multiple answers; the top five answers).
Public Policies
-Law Enacted to Assist The Disabled to Be More Independent-
On October 31, a bill to promote independence on the part persons
with disabilities was passed and came into effect in a Lower House
plenary session. The new law aims at providing services to help
disabled persons, regardless of the nature of their disability
(physical, intellectual or emotional), to become more independent
within a single, shared system that centralizes the provision of
welfare services on local municipalities. Specific services subject
to grants of benefits include the dispatch of home helpers, provision
of short-stay accommodation, funding the costs of nursing care at
facilities, training in self-dependence (including rehabilitation,
etc.), costs of assistance to gain employment and other forms of
training (welfare services for the disabled), medical expenses needed
for self-dependence (publicly funded medical expenses) to reduce the
degree of disability, and so on. In principle, users of the service
will bear 10 percent of the service costs, and the upper limit of
the burden will be set in accordance with income and other factors
affecting service users. On the other hand, under the new law,
expenses for welfare services, including home-based services which
have hitherto been subsidized by the government, will be all borne
by the government on a mandatory basis.
-Revised Occupational Health and Safety Law Enacted to Strengthen
Measures against Overwork and Mental Health Problems-
In late October, a revised Occupational Health and Safety Law was
passed and enacted in an Upper House plenary session. The law aims,
among other things, at improving and strengthening measures against
overwork and mental health problems, and at expanding the coverage
of workers' accident compensation while commuting. It stipulates,
for example, that employers must make arrangements for workers who
have worked overtime exceeding a certain number of hours (100 hours
per month) to be seen by a doctor. In the meantime, the Law concerning
Promotion of Shorter Working Hours has now been revised as the Law
concerning the Setting and Improvement of Working Hours, etc. It has
no built-in expiry date.
Public Policies
-JAL Plans Wage Cuts; Carriers' Unions Hints at Strike over End-of
-Year Lump Sum Payments-
Japan Airlines Corp. announced a 10 percent wage cut for its 54,000
employees and the suspension of several money-losing domestic lines
from fiscal year 2006. Through these measures, the carrier aims at
curbing the impact of increased fuel costs occasioned by inflated
crude oil prices, a decline in the number of passengers (attributable
to a spate of safety-related problems), and at enhancing its profit
structure. The wage cuts for employees - the key element in strengthening
the business structure - will be premised on obtaining the consensus
of the company's labor unions.
Meanwhile, three JAL Group and four ANA Group unions, with the
exception of the JAL Flight Crew Union, who have been negotiating
with the companies over their demands concerning end-of-year lump
sum payments, with a strike possibly scheduled for November 16,
decided to give up such action by the early hours of that day.
The JAL Flight Crew Union notified the company of its intention to go
on strike, but since crew members in managerial posts, i.e., non-union
members, were able to cope with ordinary services even during a strike,
flight operations remained undisrupted.
(Nippon Keizai Shimbun, November)
-No Female Directors at Japan's Six Leading Banks-
There are no females among the 58 directors of five leading banks
and the Agricultural and Forestry Central Bank in Japan, while 70
percent of banking institutions elsewhere in the world (35 institutions)
have at least one female director. This considerable gap between Japan
and the rest of the world was revealed by a survey of 50 major banking
institutions worldwide concerning the gender of their directors,
conducted in June 2005, by the Corporate Women Directors International,
CWDI, a US organization which promotes the increased presence of women
on corporate boards.
The company with the highest proportion of women board directors
is Nordea Sweden, at 36.4 percent, or four women out of a total of
eleven. Among companies in Asia, the Bank of China ranked 4th and
the China Construction Bank Corporation 14th, with 30.8 percent (4
out of 13 directors), and 15.4 percent (2 out of 13 directors),
respectively. All the six US banking institutions surveyed have women
directors, Citigroup and the Bank of America having three each.
(Asahi Shimbun, November)
Public Policies
-Taxi Drivers' Frustration-
Speaking of December, it is the last month of the year, and the
month for year-end parties. After eleven o'clock at night, in the
bustling entertainment districts of large cities, quite a few people
can be seen rushing home after year-end parties. Alcoholic drinks
are a major feature of these parties, made of various groups of
workplace contacts, office colleagues and friends. Since bonus
payments are normally paid in December, many people, due in part to
alcohol-fueled extravagance, treat themselves to taxi rides home,
so there are longer queues at taxi terminals than in other months.
Continued on;
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/archives/emm/2005/no.51/51_si.html
