WHITE PAPER ON YOUTH 2003 -- Part Two Administrative Policies on Youths
(1) Employment service (job placement) offices provide vocational guidance and job placement services in close association with educational institutes, such as schools and other relevant organizations, to help new graduates choose jobs on their respective aptitude and ability to grow as good workers and members of society. In addition to the implementation of junior internship programs for high school students, the government has been working to place job supporters who provide vocational support for new graduates from junior high schools and high schools who have yet to find jobs with consideration to a severe employment situation for such graduates and to strengthen support for finding jobs under cooperation with schools by exploring companies recruiting employees and providing guidance on a one-to-one basis.
(2) As for the internship programs under which students acquire working experience related to their major fields of study or future careers before graduating school, the government has entrusted economic associations with the implementation of projects for exploring companies that will accept internship students since December 2001. As for the recruitment of prospective new university graduates, universities are preparing the "Agreement on Employment of Students Graduating from Universities, Junior Colleges and Technical Colleges" and companies are establishing the "Company Moral Charter on the Recruitment and Selection of New Graduates." Both sides are thus trying to play by the rules of thorough publication and mutual respect of such agreements.
(3) Welfare measures for working youths have been promoted comprehensively and systematically under the Working Youth Welfare Law, the Basic Policy of Measures for Working Youth Welfare and other relevant regulations.
(4) There are various problems concerning the employment of young workers, such as (1) high unemployment rate among such workers, (2) a large number of graduates who have yet to find jobs, (3) increasing number of young workers who leave their jobs at an early stage, and (4) increasing number of job-hopping part-time workers. Due to these problems, young workers will be unable to adjust themselves to intellectual society while, in turn, the whole industrial world will be unable to secure necessary human resources, thus raising great concern over the high rate of overall unemployment. To solve these problems and ensure proper career development, the government has been providing comprehensive support measures including conventional ones, such as support for educational training provided by business entrepreneurs, the promotion of public vocational training and improvement to the vocational capability evaluation system.
(5) Grants have been made to various programs to help youth development in rural areas, including training courses provided by local governments.