A Study on the Costs and Demand for Foreign Nurses/Care Workers in Japan – from the Angle of Hospitals and Care Facilities –

Many consider that the international migration of nurses and care workers is driven largely by economic factors. Wage and cost differentials should works as a ‘push factor’ in sending countries and a ‘pull’ factor in receiving countries, though rules and regulations may partly hinder it. Japan opened the gate for foreign nurses and care givers under the Economic Partnership Agreements for the first time in 2009. It was anticipated that application and entry would rise sharply because wage gaps with other Asian countries remained high and the rapid aging of Japan’s society badly needed more nurses and care workers. However, the actual entry of such personnel has been on a declining trend in recent years, despite government efforts for reducing entry barriers. This study has attempted to analyze the pull factor, i.e. the economic costs that accrued in the hospitals and care facilities based on a survey conducted. The analysis revealed no statistically significant correlation between the economic considerations and the willingness to hire nurse candidates, implying the existence of non-economic reasons for the reduced entry of such workers. For the care givers, economic considerations seem to have had some impact on the willingness of care facilities to receive additional foreign workers. It would be imperative for the government to address institutional impediments for the nurses and pay more attention to the economic incentives for the care facilities in order to increase the number of foreign nurses and care givers in Japan.