Japan Press Weekly

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2014 August 27 - September 2 [ECONOMY]

Japanese manufacturing jobs moving abroad

Japanese manufacturers are decreasing domestic production while increasing overseas production. This is shown in the number of workers they employ inside and outside the country.

The number of manufacturing workers in Japan decreased from 10.05 million in FY2000 by around 20% or 2 million to 8.1 million in FY2012, according to the latest survey results of the labor ministry.

During the same period, the number of workers at overseas subsidiaries of Japanese makers increased from 2.81 million by 1.56 million to 4.36 million, according to the economy ministry survey results.

The total number of employees in overseas outlets of Japanese companies, including non-manufacturers, stood at around 5.58 million in FY2012. Of them, workers in Asian countries nearly doubled in twelve years from FY2000.

Japanese large corporations are allegedly using workers under harsh working conditions and are hostile to trade unions in many countries, especially in developing nations.