“Hello Work” offices to facilitate job searches from home

May 11, 2019

Tokyo--"Hello Work" public job-placement offices across Japan will facilitate job searches from home and also enhance usability for employers, by adopting more information technology.

The changes are aimed at smoother matches between job seekers and companies, said an official of the labor ministry, which operates the offices.

Job seekers can now browse a limited amount of information on job offers on the Internet. To get the full information, they need to visit a Hello Work office.

Starting in January, they will be able to access the full information via personal computers and smartphones from home, after registering their information at an office.

By setting up personal pages on the computer system for the Hello Work offices, they will also be able to save their search conditions and job offers.

In future, Hello Work offices plan to allow job seekers to apply for jobs via the Internet and also receive offers directly from companies if they make public their registered information on the system.

The offices will provide more detailed information on work conditions for offered jobs, such as systems to allow employees to work from home or return to jobs after breaks, measures to fight passive smoking and rules on overtime pay.

Such information is expected to narrow the gap between job seekers' impressions and the real jobs, helping to prevent early departures by new hires.

Companies will not have to visit a Hello Work office to offer jobs a second time after they visit an office once and set up their own information management pages on the system.

Employers will also be able to revise information on their available jobs via the Internet. In addition, they will be able to run more active recruitment campaigns by posting pictures and information to appeal to job seekers.

In fiscal 2017, which ended in March 2018, the number of new job seekers registered with Hello Work offices totaled 4.95 million and new job offers came to 10.24 million, with 1.55 million people getting jobs.

The labor ministry is disbursing 21 billion yen in a three-year period from fiscal 2017 to upgrade the system for Hello Work offices. Jiji Press