KOMATSU Kyoko

As of June 2026

Title, Research Section

Vice Senior Researcher, Career Development Division

Curriculum Vitae: [PDF:150KB]

Research Interests

Labour economics; skills policy; occupations and tasks; gender and work; comparative labour policy; policy evaluation.

Professional Experience

• Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training (JILPT) (2020–)
  – Conducting empirical research on labour markets, skills policy, occupations and tasks, gender and work, and technological change.
• Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), Government of Japan (2002–2017)
  – Worked on labour market and skills development policies, and contributed to OECD projects, including the OECD Reviews of Displaced Workers: Back to Work: Japan (PDF) and the OECD Reviews of Health Care Quality (PDF).

Education

PhD in Labour Studies, Ochanomizu University, 2022
MSc in Social Policy and Planning, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), 2007
BA in Economics, Hitotsubashi University, 2002

Selected Publications

Books and Research Publications

• Women’s Work and Careers in Japan: An Occupational and Task-Level Analysis—Four Decades Since the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. JILPT, 2026. [In Japanese]
• Changes in Task Distribution in the Japanese Labor Market, 1980–2020: Evidence from a Japan–US Comparison Using Japanese O-NET and Population Census Data. JILPT Research Series No. 280, 2024. [In Japanese]

JILPT Research Report

• No.235 Work Styles and Life/Health Issues: Analysis of the JILPT’s Longitudinal Survey of Individuals (JILLS-i) (2025)

Journal Articles in English

• “More than Usage: Expanding Socioeconomic Inequality in Access to Remote Work after COVID-19 in Japan.” Socio-Economic Review, Vol. 24, Issue 1, pp.477–504, 2026 (with Ryota Mugiyama).
• “Gender Gaps in Skill Use: The Case of Japan." (PDF:1.9MB) Japan Labor Issues, Vol. 7, No. 45, Special Issue, 2023.
• “Trends in Task Distribution in Japan, 1990–2015: Evidence from the Occupational Information Network of Japan and the Population Census Data.” (PDF:1.3MB) Japan Labor Issues, Vol. 6, No. 37, March–April 2022 (with Ryota Mugiyama).

Discussion Papers

• “Effect of Employee Representation on Job Satisfaction and Retention Intention. (PDF)” Chuo University Discussion Paper No. 407, 2025 (with Tsukasa Matsuura).

Selected Journal Articles in Japanese

• “Changes in Task Distribution in the Japanese Labor Market, 1980–2020: The Roles of Industrial Composition and ICT Adoption.” The Japanese Journal of Labour Studies, forthcoming (with Ryota Mugiyama).
• “An Analysis of Changes in Truck Operating Hours Before and After the 2024 Working Hours Regulations.” (PDF:554KB) The Japanese Journal of Labour Studies, No. 787, pp. 62–74, 2026 (with Susumu Imai and Yu Onoda).
• “Gender Differences in Job Changes: Focusing on Task Distance Before and After Changing Jobs.” (PDF) Journal of the Japan Society of Human Resource Management, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 9–25, 2024.
• “What Drives Inequality in Telework Availability by Firm Size and Employment Status?” (PDF:544KB) The Japanese Journal of Labour Studies, No. 754, pp. 87–102, 2023 (with Ryota Mugiyama).
• “Gender Inequality in the Labor Market by Occupational Skills and Occupational Sex Segregation: Insights from Japanese O-NET Matched Data.” (PDF) Sociological Theory and Methods, Vol. 36, No. 1, pp. 65–82, 2021 (with Fumiya Uchikoshi and Ryota Mugiyama).
• “Female Skill Utilization and the Gender Wage Gap in Japan: A Comparative Analysis of Japan, Korea, the UK and Norway Based on PIAAC.” (PDF:1.2MB) Journal of Social Sciences and Family Studies, No. 27, pp. 41–57, 2021.

Doctoral Dissertation

“Female Employment Focusing on Occupations and Tasks: An Empirical Analysis Using the Occupational Information Network of Japan and PIAAC.” Ochanomizu University, 2022.

Professional Affiliations

• European Association of Labour Economists
• International Labour and Employment Relations Association
• Work and Family Researchers Network

Contact Information

E-mail: ky.komatsu449 [at sign] jil.go.jp