Labor Shortage in Japan and Migration Record

The number of foreign workers in Japan has reached an all-time high, exceeding 2.57 million as of the end of October last year, according to a report by "Zaman" newspaper. Due to the country's labor shortage, the number of foreign workers has continued to set records for 13 consecutive years. Japanese media reports that the total number of foreign employees has surpassed 2,571,000, which is an 11.7% increase compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, the largest share belongs to Vietnamese workers.

The number of workplaces employing foreign nationals in the country has also reached a record high of 371,215, an 8.5% increase over the previous year's figures. According to data from Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, small businesses with fewer than 30 employees account for 63.1% of the total volume.

The manufacturing sector leads other industries with 635,075 foreign workers, making up 24.7% of the total, followed by other sectors such as food delivery services (391,946 people). The health and social welfare sector recorded a growth of 25.6% compared to the previous year. The number of those holding specific skilled worker visas, granted to foreign nationals to work in sectors experiencing labor shortages, increased by 38.3% to reach 286,225. Vietnamese workers totaled 605,906, or 23.6% of the total, followed by Chinese workers (431,949 or 16.8%) and Filipinos (260,869 or 10.1%).