TY - JOUR
T1 - Why Japanese workers remain in the labor force so long
T2 - Lessons for the United States?
AU - Williamson, John B.
AU - Higo, Masa
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgement The research reported in this article was performed pursuant to a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College (CRR). The opinions and conclusions are solely those of the authors and should not be construed as representing the opinions or policy of The Atlantic Philanthropies, the CRR, or of Boston College. The authors want to thank Kiyoshi Adachi, Scott Bass, Masayuki Fujimura, Shari Grove, Nobuhiro Hiwatari, Elizabeth Johnson, Noriko Kameda, Kiyoko Okamura, Hisao Osada, Hiroki Sato, Hiroshi Shibata, Takehito Shimoda, Lauren Sommer, Sekiguchi Teiichi, Atsuhiro Yamada, Fusako Yanagisawa, and Shigeyoshi Yoshida for their assistance in various ways with the research reported in this article. We also owe a great deal to many other Japanese labor force participation policy experts who gave so generously of their time in connection with this project. The authors take full responsibility for any and all errors in this article.
PY - 2009/11
Y1 - 2009/11
N2 - As part of the search for ways to increase labor force participation rates among older workers in the United States, it makes sense to take a close look at evidence from Japan, one of the few industrial countries with a substantially higher labor force participation rate among older workers, particularly men, than the United States. Based mainly on prior studies and original interview data, we first discuss five potential factors which help explain why Japanese workers remain in the labor force as long as they do: (1) perceived economic necessity; (2) the large fraction of workers who are self-employed; (3) a culture that puts a high value on remaining in the labor force throughout the life course; (4) the long healthy life expectancy; and (5) the government's role in facilitating the labor force participation of older workers. We suggest that the Japanese national cultural value on remaining economically productive well into old age clearly underlies the development of the government's legislative initiatives aiming to extend the working lives of older workers. We then outline three policy suggestions for those seeking to increase labor force participation rates among older U. S. workers: (1) increase the financial incentive to workers who remain in the labor force; (2) improve public programs designed to foster efforts by older workers to become self-employed; and (3) increase the extent of government efforts to link older workers to prospective employers.
AB - As part of the search for ways to increase labor force participation rates among older workers in the United States, it makes sense to take a close look at evidence from Japan, one of the few industrial countries with a substantially higher labor force participation rate among older workers, particularly men, than the United States. Based mainly on prior studies and original interview data, we first discuss five potential factors which help explain why Japanese workers remain in the labor force as long as they do: (1) perceived economic necessity; (2) the large fraction of workers who are self-employed; (3) a culture that puts a high value on remaining in the labor force throughout the life course; (4) the long healthy life expectancy; and (5) the government's role in facilitating the labor force participation of older workers. We suggest that the Japanese national cultural value on remaining economically productive well into old age clearly underlies the development of the government's legislative initiatives aiming to extend the working lives of older workers. We then outline three policy suggestions for those seeking to increase labor force participation rates among older U. S. workers: (1) increase the financial incentive to workers who remain in the labor force; (2) improve public programs designed to foster efforts by older workers to become self-employed; and (3) increase the extent of government efforts to link older workers to prospective employers.
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U2 - 10.1007/s10823-009-9102-1
DO - 10.1007/s10823-009-9102-1
M3 - Article
C2 - 19838781
AN - SCOPUS:71549134007
SN - 0169-3816
VL - 24
SP - 321
EP - 337
JO - Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology
JF - Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology
IS - 4
ER -