Abstract
With the background of worsening problems such as climate change and inequality, and the development of regional economic integration, international migration has been steadily increasing. This article will discuss the problems of foreign workers in Japan from the standpoint of social policy and suggest some desirable options. We begin by tracing the historical development of foreign worker policy and examine the present legal regime in Japan along with related public policies. The present institutional scheme, established since 1990, remains heavily weighted toward immigration control. A policy of integrating foreigners, which should guarantee their rights, encourage fulfillment of their obligations and promote their active participation in society, is still dependent upon the initiatives of municipalities. In the meantime, 1） in Asia, there have emerged complex mismatches in labor markets, not only for the highly skilled, but also for mid―skilled and low―skilled workers. In Japan as well, foreigners who have entered the country for the purpose of working account for less than 30 percent of the foreign workforce. The need to support language learning and vocational training of foreigners has proven to be very strong. In addition, 2） in Asia, internal migration of youth from rural to urban areas has become an important trend. In Japan’s rural areas, youth are leaving, and the ratio of foreign inhabitants is rising. More than half of foreign inhabitants have already acquired permanent resident status. There is an especially strong need to socially integrate second― and third―generation foreigners. Finally, 3） with the establishment of the ASEAN Community at the end of 2015, protecting migrant workers has been acknowledged as an important policy agenda. However, there has been little political will in Japan to enact legislation to prohibit discrimination against foreigners.
Even as international migration has begun to grow faster as a consequence of the “refugee crisis”, it is very difficult for Japan to guarantee stable employment and high living standards for foreigners. Furthermore, mismatches in the labor markets cannot be effectively reduced under the present system. In order to reduce the risks of foreigners and their children falling into the social underclass, there is an urgent need to establish a comprehensive migration policy comprised of the two pillars of immigration control and an integration scheme for foreigners.
