Japan to directly recruit PH nurses

The Japanese government will be conducting its own job fair to recruit those Filipino nurses and caregivers who were previously trained under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).

In a statement, the Japanese Embassy in Manila said the job fair, slated on July 31, will benefit the returnees who obtained the Japanese licensure or who were unable to obtain the Japanese licensure which supposedly qualifies them to continue their work in Japan after the conclusion of their initial contract of 3 to 5 years or those who have opted to return and stay back home in the Philippines.

According to the Japanese Embassy, over 700 Filipino nurse and caregiver candidates have already returned to the Philippines (data as of March 2018) since Japan started selecting candidates under the JPEPA.

JPEPA is a bilateral trade and economic partnership agreement that allows Japan to train Filipino nurses and caregivers and eventually hire them for employment in health institutions should they pass the rigorous language training courses.

Those who have experience under the JPEPA training are “valuable prospects” for Japanese companies who are looking for particular work experience especially in the field of nursing and caregiving.

“Apart from being familiar with the Japanese working environment, they have also acquired basic conversation ability in Japanese as they have been educated for 6 to 12 months of extensive basic Japanese language training provided by the Japanese government, plus their years of stay in Japan,” the Embassy said.

The Japanese Embassy has been conducting annual job fair since 2012 as a gesture of its government’s commitment to assist the returning Filipino nurse and caregiver candidates in finding opportunities and apply the knowledge and skills they gained in Japan.

In 2009, Japan started recruiting Filipino nurses under the Framework for the Movement of Natural Persons of JPEPA, which came into force on Dec. 11, 2008, with the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS).

The hiring program commenced with the recruitment of Filipino nurses endorsed by the POEA to JICWELS.

Last month, the government of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided to adopt a policy plan that would expand the hiring of up to 500,000 foreign workers through 2025 to address the shortage of workers in the areas of nursing, agriculture and construction.

The new plan to hire more foreign workers will be submitted to the Parliament by autumn this year for enactment.

Under this new labor policy, foreign workers with Japanese proficiency will be allowed to stay in nursing, construction, lodging, agriculture, and shipbuilding sectors for five years.

But for those under the existing trainee program where Japanese language skills are not required, the maximum length of stay will be extended to 10 years, the reports added.

Some sectors in Japan hailed the new labor policy plan as a “step forward” in improving the work conditions, particularly those trainees who are reportedly being subjected to abusive labor practices.

The hiring of more foreign workers is seen by major international institutions as one of Japan’s muchneeded reforms to ease the economic blow of its shrinking workforce.