Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine the problems and future chalIenges in the process of care
provision under the Long-Term Care Insurance system. As a means to improve quality of services, the
Certified Social Workers and Certified Care Workers Act were revised for the first time in 20 years as a
strategy to upgrade the quality of certified care workers. However, the foIIowing revision of Long-Term
Care Insurance Act had overrode the impact of the revised Certified Social Workers and Certified Care
Workers Act and the working enviromnent caused the of care-workers is deteriorating. The tum-over rate
among care-workers is increasing and care-providing institutions are suffering from the chronic shortage
of staff. Accepting foreign care-workers through the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) is expected
to increase the nmnber of care-workers. However, the EPA also introduces another semi-professionals,
assistant care-workers, and this might create a rift between existing care-workers and assistant careworkers as well as lowering their wages overall.
There being a wide range of problems in relation to the working condition of care-workers,
However, maintaining the quality of care services as well as the number of care-workers appear to be
the most urgent policy issues. In the meantime, we also need to be aware that accepting foreign careworkers
is an irrefutable option under this era globalization. We are in order to support care-workers at
this difficult time need to reconsider the existing employment model of care-workers, to improve their
working environment, to encourage their professional identity and to establish a concrete strategy to
protect domestic care-workers.
