Japanese employment and recruitment trends

Mynavi Corporation has released several surveys detailing evolving employment and recruitment trends in Japan.

Initial reports focused on specific labor segments, noting that 53% of ‘slight experience’ job seekers aim to transition into adjacent fields. While 63.9% of hiring managers have utilized these candidates to expand talent pools, approximately 73.4% of companies reported satisfaction with such hires. Additionally, research into temporary workers (haken) showed that 70.9% of respondents are satisfied with their conditions, though social challenges persist, such as workers being addressed by their status rather than their names.

Subsequent findings from the 2026 Mid-career Recruitment Status Survey indicate a growing labor shortage, with 43.5% of companies reporting a lack of full-time employees. There is a notable increase in the demand for management-level personnel; 54.8% of surveyed companies conducted mid-career recruitment for management roles, up from 38.1% in 2021. While 74.2% of companies expressed satisfaction with the quality of management hires, the labor market continues to face difficulties regarding low applicant quality and high turnover rates.