There is a long history of debate in Japan on providing financial resources for the country’s social security program. However, it has proven difficult to establish a national consensus on how this burden might be shared. To deepen understanding about this debate, we examine historical studies on thoughts and institutions related to taxes, social insurance and contribution funds. The results should give rise to useful suggestions towards shaping a national consensus on burden―sharing.

This article presents a comparative analysis of the net burden of tax and social security contributions from a gender perspective, in order to clarify characteristics of Japan’s livelihood security system related to relative poverty. Poverty is not only serious for directly afflicted persons, but also creates problems for better―off people since it weakens social stability and undermines economic growth. Since the concept of relative poverty has been criticized for various drawbacks, we will check its relevance. After considering functions of various welfare efforts of the public and private sectors outside of public social expenditure, we examine the recent relationship between the extent of government welfare programs and poverty rate in OECD countries. Given that Japan’s poorest 20％ receives relatively smaller benefits and bears heavier burdens, it is not surprising that this group exhibits stronger tax resistance than better―off groups. Japan’s single parents are treated poorly by the country’s tax and social security schemes. While transfers and services are seen as more important than the tax mix in reducing income inequality, the effects of progressive direct taxation for mitigating poverty should not be underestimated. This article concludes by drawing some policy implications from the full plenary session.

In this paper, we estimate the differences in household payments of social security contributions and taxes across income groups, and show the rate of non―payment of the National Pension in order to evaluate Japan’s social insurance system. Our results indicate that the incidence of the contributions to the social insurance scheme remains nearly flat relative to household income. With regard to co―payments by patients, the incidence even becomes regressive. Nevertheless, the impact of income tax and social security contributions on income inequality showed that the contributions had increased rather than narrowed inequality in recent years, a period in which income gaps have been expanding.As for National Pension payments, we could observe that exempting payments for low―income persons worked well. However the rate of non―payments does not increase even if household income or personal income increases. The government should be aware of the limitations of the existing social insurance scheme if the low income population increases further due to casualised employment.Finally, this study lastly suggests a need to achieve universal coverage through an employment―based social insurance system.

1. To stop the spread of the silver democracy dominated by the elderly, it is necessary to identify a rationale that can persuade a majority of elderly persons to share resources more equitably. They should be persuaded that one objective of policies that enhance benefits for children and young people, for example, is to secure a labor force that can maintain the pension system for the elderly. This paper attempts to find a means of persuading Japan’s elderly by referring to Sweden, where family and education policies have been enhanced despite an aging society.2. Sweden has ① supplied taxable cash benefits to low―income persons and expanded the tax base, ② set the pension premium burden to zero even for high―income persons based on universalism, and ③ begun treating defrayers and beneficiaries equally, thereby increasing political support.3. In the 1990s, when Sweden had the world’s fastest aging society, it supplemented higher education expenses, reformed pensions, and promoted work among the elderly.4. In view of the income gap among Japan’s elderly, future issues include research into tax and social insurance premiums. Rather than reducing the basic pension contribution for high―income persons, which would reduce political support, we should consider taxing pensions. Organizational reforms are also needed.

Paying taxes is not directly connected to the receipt of particular public services, whereas social insurance premiums are regarded as the price of the benefits. This paper discusses pertinent issues concerning these two sources of revenue.First, the personal income tax is assessed based on an individual’s aggregate income, and can realize the principle of horizontal equity. However, an employee’s social insurance premium is levied only on the payroll for his/her main employment. Second, the personal income tax is imposed on a progressive scale, and can realize the principle of vertical equity. However, the social insurance premium is regressive. Third, there are some arguments that the right to receive social benefits is based on paying social insurance premiums. However, the right to receive benefits financed by taxes is rooted in citizenship. Fourth, the democratic aspect of taxation is based on the rule that taxation must be prescribed by law. However, the extent to which insured persons can participate in deciding social insurance premium rates differs among programs. Fifth, taxes account for about half of the revenues of some social insurance programs.It is desirable to shift the source of revenue for universal benefit programs from social insurance premiums to taxes.

Job evaluations are essential to achieving “Equal Pay.” However, only a few cases have been reported in Japan because it is generally believed that successful implementation of a job evaluation system is impossible. I will report on two issues : 1） the current reality of job analysis that has been implemented in the business world in Japan, and 2） my trial in conducting another job evaluation based on “Equal Pay.” For the first topic, I will report on the detailed procedures and issues of job analysis, using a small Japanese sports―related company as a case study. This case is significant for two reasons : a） this company has a variety of sections such as R&D, manufacturing, marketing, and logistics, which is rare for a small business, and b） this company conducts job analysis for all full―time blue―collar and white―collar employees. For the second topic, I will report my own experience conducting a job evaluation based on “Equal Pay.” The company involved is presently developing a new performance appraisal scheme, adding to the implementation of job evaluations. In the development process, it has been revealed that both managers and employees have doubts about using the same performance appraisal criteria for all full―time employees. Therefore, I tried to develop another job evaluation scheme based on “Equal Pay” because I thought the results might be helpful in improving the criteria or scheme for performance appraisal.

Today in Japan, it is considered a matter of course that unfair discrepancies in pay exist depending on whether workers are employed full―time or part―time, even if the content of their work is the same. However, there are few cases of fact―finding studies intended to resolve this problem―that is, to realize the concept of equal pay for work of equal value. In order to realize equal pay, it would be impractical to lower the wage base of full―time workers to match that of part―time workers, but it would be practical to raise the wage base of part―time workers to match that of full―time workers. When doing so, securing a source of funding to pay for the increased labor costs is extremely important. However, there are differences in management’s ability to secure such funding. Of course, it would be natural to regard management as having responsibility for securing such funding, but this paper considers the possibility of securing additional funding sources through other methods. The result is a meaningful case study that identifies the possibility of realizing equal pay from the perspective of addressing the issue of devising sources of funding.This paper examines the specialized profession of nursing, which is the subject of a national qualification program, and is highly important to our aging society.

It is likely that there arose many dislocations and problems such as a decrease in the number of doctors throughout the period of the spread of Western medicine in the early Meiji era. The purpose of this study is to examine the medical security system of that era. This study focuses on medical missionaries, examining the case of Dr. Palm, who resided from 1875 to 1883 in Niigata Prefecture.The Niigata case shows how Western medicine spread in Japan. A public medical school was established, but the number of doctors who learned Western medicine did not increase rapidly. This school changed its education system from Dutch to German style, but made the change about ten years later than occurred in Tokyo. Many medical personnel and inhabitants did not accept Western medicine.Dr. Palm’s medical mission gave people in Niigata Prefecture opportunities to have medical examinations and receive clinical teaching based on Western medicine. His excellent treatment encouraged people to accept Western medicine as he provided medical security for them. It should be recorded in the history of Japanese medical services that there were medical missionaries in some regions.

This study analyzes the process of introducing job―based HRM at Mitsubishi Electric Corporation in 1950, and considers how the company generated early signs of job―specific HRM. Three points are made clear by the case. First, the new system could easily be connected with the prewar piecework payment. Second, Mitsubishi Electric, reacting to the resistance of the labor union and its members, amended the system when it introduced the job―based HRM system. Third, the labor union was not necessarily negative about the job―based HRM system. When Mitsubishi Electric introduced the job―based HRM system in 1950, job grades based on job analysis/job evaluation were set, and were reflected in wage rates. Although the proportion of the job―based element in the wage was still small and the job―based wage was subject to upward/downward fluctuation, it could be considered as an early sign of job―specific HRM, which emerged as early as in the period immediately after World War Ⅱ, since the system based on the job evaluation had been established. Thereafter, the early sign was developed as job―specific HRM at Mitsubishi Electric.