The spread of infections with the new coronavirus is increasingly having an adverse effect on employment that supports people's livelihoods.
The government should do its best to ensure that the benefits of support measures are quickly and widely distributed to those in need.
Tourism-related companies, such as hotels, inns and bus operators, have been hit particularly hard with a rapidly declining number of customers. Restaurants and events-related businesses are also in severe business situations amid self-restraint on going out and other social distancing measures. There was also a taxi company that notified about 600 drivers and other employees of their dismissals.
In the restaurant industry and the like, many businesses operators are midsize, small or very small enterprises as well as one-person businesses, with a high proportion of non-regular workers. Measures to aid them must be implemented urgently so that their businesses and daily life do not run into a dead end.
The use of employment adjustment subsidies for companies that let their employees take leave instead of terminating their contracts will serve as a significant option to prevent layoffs. Companies allocate subsidies to compensate the employees they asked to take leave. The government has expanded the scope of companies eligible for the subsidies program while also raising the proportion of the amount covered by subsidies as part of the measures to tackle the coronavirus situation.
However, this program has not been fully utilized. About 200,000 consultations have taken place since mid-February at relevant reception counters nationwide, but the number of actual applications has been sluggish. The biggest factor is the program's poor usability.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry will drastically reduce the number of items to be filled out on application forms and shorten the time required for payment from about two months to one month. Even so, it is more time-consuming when compared to Germany, where only two documents are needed to apply for similar subsidies. Further improvement is required from Japan.
The number of companies going bankrupt as a result of the ongoing pandemic is on the rise.
Many small and midsize companies have only a few months' worth of cash on hand. In particular, businesses such as eateries, hotels and retailers tend to have little cash on hand.
As a countermeasure, the government has established a system to extend loans with effectively zero interest without collateral, but loans have not been executed as expected due to a flood of applications. Strengthening and improving the handling at reception counters and the screening procedures are urgently needed.
For small and midsize businesses and the like, there is also a cash subsidy of up to 2 million yen. It is hoped that business operators will make use of such funds to overcome the difficulties.
As the government has intermittently implemented support measures, various programs exist in parallel, making the situation complicated. The government needs to work out ways to fully inform the public.
Efforts by the private sector are also essential.
In the auto industry, which employs 5.5 million people, including subcontractors, a fund financed mainly by major automakers will be set up to support small and midsize auto parts manufacturers. This idea could serve as a useful reference for other industries.
Some industries are short of workers, such as the distribution sector having to handle the expansion of online shopping due to self-restraint on going out. Temporary staffing across industries can be another option.
Each company should be aware of their social responsibility to protect the lives of their employees and make efforts to maintain employment.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on April 27, 2020.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
