A forum was held in Tokyo to think about the economic disparities that countries face and how to deal with them, amid the dramatic changes in the global economic environment, such as rapid price increases.
This forum was held by the OECD = Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the government-affiliated research institute "Labor Policy Research and Training Organization", and about 700 people participated online, including government officials and researchers.
First, an OECD official analyzed the disparities in each country and reported that 78% of people in the OECD and 72% of people in Japan felt that the income disparities in their own countries were too large.
Next, researchers from the Japan Institute for Labor Policy and Training explained a questionnaire survey conducted jointly with NHK on more than 5,000 people this summer.
The researcher pointed out that more than half of the respondents answered that they "cannot afford to live their lives now," and about 40% of those under the age of 40 think that they "cannot be richer than their parents." In addition, he pointed out that the expansion of non-regular employment and the shrinking of the middle-income class may have had an impact.
After this, managers, labor unions, and university experts discussed countermeasures.
In order to gain competitiveness and grow the economy, it is important to increase disposable income by investing in people and raising wages, and to allow diverse forms of employment. It was pointed out that it is important not to let the disparity become fixed by boosting and establishing a safety net.