The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has discouraged companies from hiring employees. It is important for the public and private sectors to work together to prevent a recurrence of the so-called employment ice age.
The government has asked the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) and three other economic organizations to encourage companies to proactively hire young people who have graduated from school in the past three years by treating them as new graduates. A joint statement by Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Norihisa Tamura and three other Cabinet ministers said it is "important to provide a wide range of opportunities to young people who have motivation and ability."
As companies today still stick to the mass recruitment of new graduates, graduating from school is a golden opportunity for young people to find jobs they aspire to. If they fail in their initial job-hunting activities, it is desirable for young people to have more opportunities to try again, in which they are treated as new graduates.
Since 2010, after the global financial crisis was triggered by the collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers, the government has urged companies to treat people who have graduated from school in the past three years in the same way as new graduates, pointing out that the employment situation has become more severe. Toyota Motor Corp. and other companies have already expanded their scope of hiring new graduates.
However, many companies have reduced the number of people to be hired amid the prolonged outbreak of the novel coronavirus. According to a survey conducted by a job information company, only 88.7% of university students had received job offers as of Oct. 1. This is the lowest level in the past five years, even though the employment market in recent years is said to have been favorable for students.
The period from 1993 to around 2004, following the collapse of the bubble economy, has been described as an employment ice age because companies considerably reduced the number of new graduates they hired. Many people who graduated from school during this period have had no choice but to work as non-regular employees and live unstable lives.
If young people cannot foresee their future, it will surely be difficult for them to start a family. This is a serious issue that will eventually result in lowering the birthrate.
There are many cases in which companies have canceled job offers. Among the people who graduated from school this spring, 201 had had their job offers canceled as of the end of September. Withdrawing a job offer can be the equivalent of dismissal and can be nullified unless there are reasonable grounds involved. The government should step up its efforts to monitor these moves.
The labor ministry has set up special counseling counters at 56 Hello Work public job placement offices for new graduates nationwide. They are working to prevent job offers from being canceled and to help students secure new offers.
To provide information on companies with good working conditions for young people, the ministry is making public online the names of companies that have been recognized for meeting certain conditions, such as having a turnover rate of 20% or lower over the past three years. Hopefully there will be more opportunities for young people to find quality small and midsize businesses.
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, there must be companies that have improved their business performances and are eager to hire new employees. Young people tend to be interested in the size of companies and how famous they are, but popular companies can change from time to time. Young people are urged to consider where they should find employment from a broad perspective, by assessing their own aptitude.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on Nov. 5, 2020.
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