The first group of Indian nursing care workers, specially trained through a partnership with a Japanese firm, is set to begin work in Japan this month. This initiative comes as Japan grapples with a severe labor shortage and an increasingly aging population, highlighting a new strategy to address the nation’s critical care needs.

This collaboration marks a significant step in leveraging India’s large, younger workforce to meet the growing demands of Japan’s elderly care sector.

A New Pipeline for Care Talent

The program is the result of a partnership between Sompo Care, a subsidiary of Japan’s Sompo Holdings, and India’s National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).

• Training Program: In August last year, Sompo Care launched a specialized training center near New Delhi. It offers a nine-month program that includes comprehensive Japanese language instruction and practical training using care equipment imported directly from Japan.
• Deployment Goals: The initial aim is to train and deploy 100 Indian caregivers annually, with an ambitious long-term objective of hiring 1,000 workers by 2040.
• First Graduates: In April, the first nine trainees successfully completed the program. Eight of them passed Japan’s “specified skills” test, which qualifies them for residency and employment in the country. They are expected to start working at care facilities in Japan as early as July.

Fair Compensation and Future Opportunities

Sompo Care has committed to ensuring that the Indian recruits receive equitable treatment.

• Equal Pay: Indian caregivers will be paid on par with their Japanese colleagues.
• Career Advancement: Those who demonstrate exceptional performance may also have opportunities for promotion into management roles.

Sompo Care, which previously recruited from Southeast Asia, is now strategically shifting its focus to India. This change is driven by increasing competition for talent in Southeast Asia, combined with India’s larger and younger workforce, and its higher youth unemployment rate, making it a promising source for international recruitment.

Japan’s Deepening Workforce Crisis

Japan faces a profound demographic challenge, with an aging population and a shrinking workforce straining its public services, particularly in healthcare.

• Projected Shortfall: Projections indicate a massive shortfall of around 570,000 nursing care workers by 2040.
• Retirement Reforms: To counter these trends, Japan has been reforming its retirement norms. In 2013, the Act on Stabilisation of Employment of Elderly Persons (ASEEP) was amended, requiring companies to offer employment until age 65 and encouraging opportunities up to age 70.
• Older Workers in the Workforce: A 2023 labor ministry survey showed that 42% of companies now allow staff to work until 70 or beyond, a significant increase from a decade prior. In 2024, 5.4 million people aged 70 or older were still employed, marking a 70% increase since 2014.
• Sector-Specific Shortages: Labor shortages are particularly severe in critical sectors like nursing care and construction, where workers aged 65 and above now constitute 14% of the entire workforce, and up to 17% in the hardest-hit industries.

This new partnership with India represents a key strategy for Japan to mitigate its acute labor shortages and sustain its essential services in the face of ongoing demographic shifts.