"Japan eyes training foreign workers amid labor shortages" 3 March 2024

The Japanese government has adopted plans to create a new system designed to train unskilled foreign workers and facilitate their attainment of medium- to long-term employment opportunities in Japan.

The initiative is part of a broader strategy to address pressing labor shortages in the country.

The new system, which will prioritize the development of human resources, is intended for enabling foreign individuals to acquire the necessary skills, within a three-year time frame, to qualify for Type 1 or Type 2 visa under the residency system for foreign nationals...

Once approved, the proposed training system will supersede the current foreign technical internship system... [that] has faced criticism for inadvertently fostering the exploitation of trainees as cheap labor...

A government-appointed panel of experts, chaired by Japan International Cooperation Agency President Akihiko Tanaka, started discussions on revising the system in December 2022...

Under the current technical internship system, trainees are restricted in principle from changing employers, a practice that has been accused of fostering infringement on the human rights of foreign nationals, including instances of wage nonpayment and excessively long work hours...

The panel's report recommended allowing trainees to switch jobs within the same industry as their current employers, provided that they meet certain criteria...

Nevertheless, the report acknowledged the possible need for exceptions to the rule on job changes... The report urged the government to consider implementing necessary transitional measures, such as allowing a longer restriction period to be set in some sectors...

...the government's policy seeks to temporarily permit industry sectors to determine the restriction period, in a range from one to two years.