Some 98,000 Disabled People Find Jobs in FY 2017

May 27, 2018

Tokyo- The number of disabled people who found jobs through Hello Work public job placement offices in Japan in fiscal 2017 stood at 97,814, up 4.9 pct from the previous year, government data showed Friday.

The figure rose for the ninth straight fiscal year and marked a record for the eighth consecutive year, according to the data released by the welfare ministry.

Companies stepped up hiring people with disabilities in view of the government raising the required employment rate for the disabled from 2.0 pct to 2.2 pct from fiscal 2018, which started in April, ministry officials said.

The number of newly employed workers with mental disabilities rose by 8.9 pct to 45,064 and that of intellectually disabled workers by 3.2 pct to 20,987. Meanwhile, jobs offered to the physically challenged inched down 0.7 pct to 26,756.

The medical and welfare industry was the largest employer of the disabled by sector, hiring 35,566 people, up 0.5 pct. The manufacturing sector, which has been hit by serious labor shortages, employed 13,595, up 10.8 pct. Jiji Press