Government's empty promise of job creation -- Akahata editorial, June 21A program aimed at creating 5.3 million jobs has been drawn up by a government panel. It will be included in the 2003 version of the government's general economic policy. But many see it as a package of empty promises.
A similar job creation plan was launched two years ago by the Koizumi Cabinet and came under fire for looking good only on paper. It was seen as only being effective for increasing contingency jobs. In fact, contrary to the plan's estimate that the unemployment rate will fall below 4 percent, the unemployment figure jumped in the last two years.
Unemployment has soared in the last 2 years
The 2001 plan also set a target of creating 5.3 million jobs mainly in the service sector. However, it has been reported that only 920,000 jobs were created in the last two years, which is less than half of the annualized target of one million. What was worse, the number of jobs decreased in all industries by about 580,000 under the Koizumi "reform" policy.
The average number of unemployed in 2000 was 3,200,000, and the rate stood at 4.7 percent. Prime Minister Koizumi took office in April 2001. In April 2003, the unemployment rate rose to 5.4 percent (3,800,000). Clearly, the job creation plan of two years ago has failed.
How irresponsible it is for the government to put forth another unrealistic plan, supposedly to create more than 5,000,000 jobs through "structural reform focusing on job creation" without any examination of its misgovernment in the past years!
What is put forward in the plan is not convincing.
For example, the government program expects a creation of 1.37 million-2.13 million new jobs under the assumption that demand for home-help services such as food catering and asset management for individuals and households will sharply increase, reflecting an increase in the number of working women and in the percentage of the elderly population.
The problem is that most of the jobs available to women are low-paying contingency jobs, including part-time jobs. How can home-help jobs increase tenfold when an increasing number of women's annual incomes are as low as 1 million yen (9,000 dollars) or 2 million yen (17,000 dollars)? Asset-management will be needed only by a handful of high income earners.
How irresponsible it is for the government to inflate the expected job creation figures while at the same time promoting policies that only help increase low paying jobs and reduce household earnings!
The government estimates that 2,000,000 jobs will be created by taking advantage of a greater use of IT technology and temporary workers. It is doubtful that this estimate is feasible.
Look at the major electronics makers and telecommunication firms which are the front runners in the use of information technology. Following the burst of the IT bubble, these companies have carried out corporate restructuring that cut 200,000 jobs. The government is selling a plan to create jobs on the failed premise of taking advantage of IT.
The government has eased regulations on the use of temporary workers in the manufacturing sector, but this only helps companies to replace as many full-time workers as possible with temporary workers. This does not help increase jobs.
The number of jobs may increase in the service sector, but many of them are low-paying and unstable jobs.
We cannot overlook the fact that the Koizumi Cabinet is making this "5.3 million new job plan" as an excuse for forcing more workers out of jobs under its 'reform' policy and shifting heavier financial burdens on the working people.
Shimada Haruo, the cabinet's special adviser and the team's chief, stated that "given that as many as 4 million workers will lose jobs in the construction, agriculture, fisheries, and manufacturing-related industries by 2005, the government must work to increase jobs" (Tokyo Shimbun, June 11, 2003).
Change government's employment policy
At a time when Japan is experiencing the highest unemployment rate ever, the task is for the government to take steps to stop new job losses and help create jobs by eliminating unpaid work and shortening working hours. The government's employment policy must be completely changed to one of offering more job opportunities, including temporary public service jobs that will be help improve people's living conditions. (end)