In recent decades, companies have tried to gain some flexibility by increasing the ranks of “non-regular workers” — employees on short-term contracts who work for lower wages and have less job security. During the 2008 financial crash, these workers, who currently account for about 40 percent of the work force, were the first to lose their jobs. The pattern has held during the coronavirus pandemic, with 970,000 non-regular workers losing their jobs in April, according to government data. She said she worried that the current downturn could set back recent progress made by women in the workplace. In the months ahead, the unemployment rate is likely to rise further as Japanese companies, particularly in the service industry, cope with the pandemic’s fallout.

Source: New York Times June 20, 2020 12:33 UTC