Abstract
All developed countries are facing the problems of declining birthrates and growing proportions of elderly people. They are now confronted with labor shortages as well. Accepting migrant workers into the labor market has been the most popular and effective remedy. The rate of aging of the Japanese population is already the highest in the world. Nevertheless, the Japanese government still does not regularly permit migrant workers to seek employment. On the other hand, the conditions of migrant workers in housekeeping and caregiving have been strongly affected by the activities of the employment placement agencies in the global labor market. These activities include decades of grievous rights infringements as human trafficking has expanded. Recently some Asian countries have established economic communities, the most important example being ASEAN. One of the main functions of ASEAN has been establishing policies for migrant labor. Bearing in mind the needs of the Japanese labor market for additional labor, this report focuses on the effect of the movement of migrant workers in housekeeping and care work, and offers a concrete discussion about policies that need to be implemented.
