Keyword in the labor market
Career consultant / Career counselor
Career consultants or counselors provide advice and support for people changing jobs or in some other process of career transition. Consultants base this support on interviews with the job seeker to learn about their career experience to date and their career goals and expectations for the future. They then match this information with their knowledge of the personnel requirements of potential employers to set up introductions. To do this successfully, the consultant must have an in-depth knowledge of current labour market conditions and trends in a range of industries, as well as familiarity with the specific recruitment needs of companies operating in those industries.
By introducing suitable potential candidates to employers, career consultants create a more efficient job market by closing the information gap between job seekers with particular skills, experience and expectations, and companies that are looking for those same qualities.
M-curve (ratio of women in the labour force by age group)
The M-curve describes the characteristic pattern of female employment by age group in Japan. The name comes from the 'M' shaped curve that results from graphing the female rate of employment against age.
The employment rate of women in their early 20s is high, but the rate drops sharply for the late 20s and early 30s age group. It then increases again for women in their 40s, before falling once again as women enter their 50s. This sharp drop in working women in their late 20s and early 30s reflects the tendency of women to leave their jobs when they get married and start families, returning to work once their children have grown older and their child-caring responsibilities have diminished.
The national census carried out by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in October 2000 shows that the labour force participation rate ― the percentage of the population over the age of 14 who were active in the labour force ― was 74.8% for men and 48.2% for women. By age group however there were two distinct peaks: At 23 the female participation rate was 79.9%, while at 46 the figure was 70.7%. In the middle, the figure dips to just 55.8% for women aged 33.
This pattern of female employment is characteristic of Japan and is not generally seen in other developed economies. The top reasons given by both men and women for females dropping out of the labour force around the age of 30 are: child-rearing; insufficient support systems and conditions not conducive to long-term employment of women; caring responsibilities for sick or elderly family members; and 'domestic affairs'.
Employability
Employability is a measure of the propensity for continued employment in the labour market. There are two aspects to employability: one is the continued employment possibilities within an employee's present company (how necessary he or she is for the continued success of the company); the other is the employment potential a person has in other companies (how in-demand a person's skills are in the job market as a whole).
Traditionally, Japanese employees – and especially those working for large companies – have expected lifetime employment within the same company. In recent years, however, many people have found themselves looking for alternative employment following restructuring or as a result of M&As. For some, particularly those engaged in ad-hoc assignments in their former companies, or used to work that was highly company-specific, employment possibilities with other companies – the second aspect of employability – can be somewhat lower than a candidate might expect.
Work-life balance
Work-life balance refers to an equilibrium of work commitments and aspects of private life such as family, personal development and other interests. It can also refer to companies' policies and initiatives that encourage employees to maximize their individual qualities and capabilities, both in the workplace and in their private life.
Part of the thinking behind work-life balance is that if employees have more time to spend with their families and on outside interests, some benefits are likely to accrue to the company too, in the form of better concentration, heightened creativity, and so on. While in the short-term work-life programs can increase labour costs, in the longer term companies hope that their employees will become more productive as a result.
Work-life balance programs originated in the US and are often in part aimed specifically at women – encouraging the promotion of women to key positions and maintaining their career during child-care leave, for example.
Diversity
The idea of promoting diversity in the workplace is a relatively new concept. Originating from corporate America, diversity programs aim to sharpen competitiveness by taking steps to ensure that the workplace contains a diverse mix of age, gender, ethnic backgrounds and religions that reflects the demographics of the wider marketplace. One way to achieve this is through positive action policies which actively set targets for the ethnic, gender or age makeup of the company.
In Japan, diversity programs have been gaining ground in the last few years after the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations set up a study group on the subject in 2000. Some companies have since formed diversity teams or departments that work, in particular, to promote better gender and age balance, and to change attitudes among employees of the predominant demographic group.
Since the number of females holding senior executive and managerial positions in Japan is small compared to many other developed economies, Japan can be termed a 'diversity-developing' country.
White-collar exemption
White-collar exemption is an idea from the US that shifts the focus of compensation away from the time spent in the workplace and to the actual work done. The exemption in question is a company's obligation to pay overtime allowances for hours worked over and above a standard set down in law.
In Japan, the 1947 Labour Standards Law specifies an 8 hour workday and a 40 hour working week; anything over this is supposed to be paid as overtime. A reform bill put before the Diet earlier this year, however, would have replaced some of the existing regulations with a more flexible approach for some higher-paid employees. These employees would have greater freedom to work as many hours as their jobs required: during busy periods, it would be possible for them to work (legally) for 24 hours straight, while in quieter periods they may only put in a few hours each day.
While corporate executives backed the reform bill, Japan's labour unions came out sharply against it, fearing loss of income for their members. With elections looming, passage of the bill was postponed, though may be reintroduced again later in the year.
In the US, white-collar exemption has traditionally been seen as something of a status symbol for upper-income earners. The system's scope has been gradually expanded, however, so that now employees down to the level of assistant manager in some companies can take advantage of the system.