Photo/Illutration Participants learn how to operate a cash register during a job fair for seniors offered by Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward government in collboration with a leading operator of convenience stores in 2018. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

A growing number of Japanese are still working after turning 65, many due to financial concerns or a desire for something meaningful to do, according to a government survey.

The finding comes as the number of people aged 65 or older in Japan in 2022 is estimated hit a record 36.27 million, or 60,000 more than last year, accounting for 29.1 percent of the country’s total population, also a new high.

Japan’s share of people aged 65 or older among the overall population is the highest in the world, followed by Italy’s 24.1 percent and Finland’s 23.3 percent,

The survey by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications was released to coincide with Respect-for-the-Aged Day on Sept. 19, a national holiday.

It found that 25.1 percent of those aged 65 or older are continuing to work. The share rises to 50.3 percent if the age bracket is limited to 65- to 69-year-olds, exceeding 50 percent for the first time.

The government has been encouraging older adults to remain in the workforce to help meet a manpower shortage triggered by the nation’s declining birthrates.

Japan’s productive-age population--those aged 15 to 64--has been sliding after peaking at about 87 million in 1995. Japan has lost around 12 million members of its workforce over the past 25 years.

The downward trend is expected to continue, raising concerns about a continuing labor shortfall in the coming years.

The latest study showed that women aged 65 or older totaled 20.53 million, or 32 percent of the nation’s female population, while men in this age group numbered 15.74 million, or 26 percent of the male population.

Seniors aged 75 or older totaled 19.37 million, or 15.5 percent of the overall population.

The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research estimates that in 2040, those aged 65 or older will represent 35.3 percent of Japan’s total population as children of the baby boomer generation join that age group.

The internal affairs ministry’s Labor Force Survey showed that a record 9.09 million workers were aged 65 or older last year, extending the rise for 18 straight years.

Male and female workers in this age bracket represented 34.1 percent and 18.2 percent of their of peers, respectively.

Of the senior workers, 5.17 million were employed by businesses, excluding board members.

The Labor Force Survey noted that 3.93 million people, or 75.9 percent, worked under nonregular status, a category that includes part-time workers.

The most cited reason by both men and women for holding down nonregular jobs was that they want to work when it is convenient for them. More than 30 percent fell into this category.

According to the survey, 21.7 percent of women said they want to earn supplementary income for their households, making it the second most cited reason among women.

The share of men citing the same reason was 16.4 percent, making it the third most common answer among men.

(This article was written by Issei Sakakibara and Hideaki Ishiyama.)



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