Japan's Labor Market Overview for July 2025: Insights and Analysis

Overview of Japan's Labor Market in July 2025

In a monthly report published by the Tsunagu Work Style Research Institute, which operates under the Tsunagu Group Holdings, the state of Japan's labor market for July 2025 has been delineated. This report, curated from various official labor market-related data, highlights some important trends and metrics, offering insights into future economic conditions.

Key Findings

1. Effective Job Availability Ratio Stands at 1.22
The effective job availability ratio for July 2025 remained unchanged at 1.22, the same as the previous month. Compared to July of the previous year, it has decreased slightly by 0.03 points. The ratio for part-time job openings is 1.16, reflecting a decline of 0.04 points from last year. In contrast, the effective job availability ratio for full-time positions is 1.02, marking a slight increase of 0.01 points compared to the same month last year, making it the only employment type to surpass its year-over-year figure.

2. Unemployment Rate Registered at 2.3%
The total unemployment rate in Japan for July 2025 was recorded at 2.3%, which is a decrease of 0.2 points from the previous month and a reduction of 0.3 points when compared to July last year. Notably, the only group maintaining its previous year's jobless rate are individuals aged 15-24, while all other age categories showed a decline. The count of completely unemployed individuals amounted to 1.69 million, which is a drop of 190,000 from the same month last year.

3. Decline in New Job Openings by 1.2%
July 2025 saw a 1.2% decrease in new job openings compared to the same month in the previous year. This marks the third consecutive month where the figures have fallen short of year-over-year comparisons. Sectors like education and learning support (up 9.8%), information communication (up 2.7%), and non-classified service industries (up 2.2%) witnessed a rise in job listings, while accommodations and food services (down 9.7%), wholesale and retail trade (down 4.7%), and personal and recreational services (down 3.6%) experienced declines.

The Tsunagu Work Style Research Institute places particular emphasis on sectors with significant recruitment numbers, categorizing dominant industries such as construction, manufacturing, transport and postal services, wholesale and retail, accommodation and food services, and other non-classified services as primary sectors of analysis.

Sources of Data

The labor market data has been compiled from two reputable sources: the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare detailing general occupational introductions as of July 2025, and the Statistics Bureau of Japan presenting results from the Labor Force Survey for the same time frame.

About Tsunagu Work Style Research Institute

Tsunagu Work Style Research Institute, established in 2015, operates under the auspices of Tsunagu Group Holdings, led by CEO Mitsuhiro Yoneda. It serves as a research institute focused on diverse work styles, actively collaborating with experts in human resources and labor law to elucidate key points in the implementation of labor regulations while providing insightful analyses on the evolution of these laws to suggest ideal labor practices.

Learn more about the Institute’s findings and the implications of the labor data on its official website.

- May 2025 Labor Market Analysis: Effective job availability ratio at 1.24, unemployment at 2.5%.
- June 2025 Labor Market Review: Maintaining an effective job availability ratio at 1.22, unemployment also at 2.5%.