Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) announced that amendments to the Employment Insurance Act reflect changing work styles. They have been set by the Cabinet and submitted to the Diet for passage into law starting April, 2024. The MHLW states that “In order to build an employment safety net that effectively supports diverse work styles and strengthen “investment in people,” we will expand the scope of employment insurance.
The government will take measures such as enhancing educational training and reskilling support, and ensuring stable financial management regarding childcare leave benefits.”
The main contents included in this amendment are as follows.
Expanding the application of employment insurance
→ Effective October 1
Enhancement of education and training and re-skilling support
●Review of the benefit restrictions of the basic allowance
→ Effective April 1, 2020
●Revision of employment promotion allowance
→ Effective April 1, 2020
●Revision of education and training benefits
→ Enforced on October 1, 2020. The benefit rate of education and training benefits will be increased from up to 70% to 80% of the tuition fee
→ October 1, Reiwa 6. Reducing the benefit rate of education and training support benefits (80% → 60% of the basic allowance) and the continuation of its provisional measures until the end of FY2024
Securing stable financial management related to childcare leave benefits
●Abolition of provisional measures to reduce the national treasury burden of childcare leave benefits
→ Enforcement on the date of promulgation
●While raising the benefit rate of childcare leave benefits (0.4% → 0.5%), it is possible to reduce (0.5% → 0.4%) according to the situation of insurance finances (Note 2)
→ Effective April 1, 2020
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Japan’s MHLW announced that amendments to the Employment Insurance Act reflect changing work styles.
For details of the various amendments, please visit the MHLW portal. All materials are in Japanese.
