Techies to drivers, all kinds of Indian workers should head to Japan

A substantial part of India’s demographic dividend lies outside its shores, in countries like Japan, with shrinking working age and rising elderly populations. To encash this dividend, we need concerted initiatives and investments to upgrade the skills of Indian workers that are specifically required in these countries. This is an excellent opportunity for staffing companies to liaise between Japanese firms and Indian workers, train Indian workers on cultural competence and ethics to excel in Japan and establish trust that Indian workers can deliver services without ruffling Japanese social fabric. Demographers use the term ‘demographic dividend’ to describe the economic benefits that a country enjoys from its large young population. India has one of the world’s largest reservoirs of youth. Yet, it has caused us to worry about unemployment rates and stagnant wages. Many want to go to the West for better jobs and higher salaries. But there are largely unexplored opportunities in the East. Over the past three decades, Japan’s working-age population shrank 15%. The trend will continue. Japan’s ability to manage its economy with the shrinking labour force is weakening, a reality that local Japanese political leaders acknowledge. A survey by Kyodo News in 2023 found that 86% of municipalities want more foreign workers. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r It is common to see highly skilled Indians, such as engineers and tech experts, in Japan. On a recent visit to Fujikawaguchiko, a Japanese resort town in the northern foothills of Mount Fuji in Minamitsuru district, I met two Indian engineers. They mentioned that there were 400 Indian engineers working at Suzuki factories in their district or prefecture. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r Yet, Japan needs workers not just at the very high end, but also at various spectrums of skills, such as drivers and construction workers. And India can provide them in large numbers. Hardworking Japanese society has handled its demographic challenges with remarkable dignity. It has used multiple means to increase its labour force internally by:Raising the historically low workforce participation of women. It has now increased from 58% in 1991 to 75% in 2020.Relaxing norms of retirement age and increasing overtime. Japan’s male labour force participation is one of the highest in the world at 87%. Japanese people retire yet continue to work within their communities voluntarily. However, it now appears that the sources of workers who could possibly keep the labour force from falling have been exhausted. Consider these:The average age of taxi drivers in Japan is 59 years.A fourth of the skilled workforce in the construction sector is older than 60. Few new sources of labour exist, and size of the construction workforce has shrunk 27% since 2000.Labour scarcity is so acute that in 2022, about 40% of businesses hired workers aged 70 or older, and allowed older workers to continue working. Japanese industry is investing heavily in labour-saving devices. But so far, labour savings from such investments are modest.Most Japanese employers expect their employees to work overtime, and workers consider it their duty to do so. However, excessive overtime can be dangerous for the elderly. The work-style legislation of 2019 caps overtime at 45 hours a month and 360 hours a year. But several sectors facing severe labour shortages — including truck and bus drivers, construction workers, and doctors — were exempted. Starting April, overtime work in construction is restricted to 720 hours (or 15 hours a week, assuming 48 working weeks in a year) and for physicians to 960 workers (or 20 hours a week, assuming 40 working weeks in a year). Expect these restrictions to increase as the nation’s working age population gets older. While a 50-year-old physician may work 60 hours a week, the same may not be possible for a 60-year-old physician. Likewise, there are likely perils to working 55 hours in construction for workers aged 65 and above. While Japanese society has been reluctant to accept foreign workers, change is coming. In 2019, the Japanese government announced two programmes for foreign workers:Type 1: Workers with specific skills and experiences are allowed to work in Japan for five years.Type 2: Individuals with higher skill levels can work permanently.In sectors, such as tourism, where English-speaking skills are rewarding, Indian workers can provide a range of services. For example, Japanese schools and universities need English teachers, and India can provide them. A key obstacle for foreign workers in Japan is the language, one of the world’s toughest ones to master. Indians, too, face this problem. Yet, a rudimentary knowledge of Japanese and competent use of translation devices paves the way to the Japanese labour market and the dividends it stores for India’s young demography.Lead image: TOI+/AI The writer is professor of social policy, Columbia University, US