World of HR: Companies in Japan struggle to hire disabled workers

Japan will raise the disabled worker quota from 2.5% to 2.7% next summer, and it’s causing concern for some employers.

Like countries including Brazil and India, Japan uses hiring quotas to encourage employers to hire more disabled workers. The requirements went into effect in the 1970s with a quota of 1.5%. More than 40 years later, just 46% of employers currently meet or exceed the target disability representation rate, and employers that don’t meet the quota have to pay a fine, according to the Financial Times.

In a country of roughly 124 million people, there are nearly 700,000 disabled workers, but businesses struggle to find workers to fill the quota, according to the HR Digest. The country and its employers have also taken steps toward disability inclusion, by incorporating assistive technology and educating non-disabled workers, the Japan Times reported.

However, employers still face hurdles as they try to meet their hiring targets. While there are more disabled people in the workforce than ever, the overall workforce is shrinking, and many workplaces are still not designed for people with physical disabilities. Furthermore, some disabled people claim that the work isn’t set up for their skillsets and disabled workers are hired just to hit the quota, which results in high turnover, the Financial Times reported. Workers are frequently hired for menial jobs, like sorting mail or doing inventory at clothing stores.

“Society has made some progress in creating a barrier-free environment,” Naoya Tsuji, director of the AJU Center for Independent Living, told the Financial Times. “If the workplace environment were more barrier-free, people with disabilities would be able to work more.”

Tsuji added that more employers need to provide flexibility so disabled workers can reach their potential.

“The fast-paced shift to active recruitment raises such concerns as the quality and mismatch in the employment,” Satoko Shinbo, a professor and disability employment specialist at Hosei University, told the Japan Times. “Companies need to discuss with such employees their disability conditions and suitability for jobs to constantly make adjustments.”