The continued depreciation of the yen has driven Japanese people to search for the keyword “ワーホリ” (working holiday) to a record high. With minimum wages in Australia and Canada being 2.5 to 3.5 times higher than those in Japan, these countries have become the most popular working holiday destinations for Japanese people.
TOKYO, JAPAN (Business Northeast) – Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare recently announced that the number of foreign workers in Japan surpassed 2 million for the first time in 2023, setting a new record. However, as the yen continues to weaken, the attraction for Japanese people to work overseas is gradually increasing. In March this year, the number of times Japanese netizens searched for “ワーホリ” on Google hit a record high, and the search popularity remains elevated. This trend indicates a growing interest among Japanese workers in seeking employment abroad.
Australia and Canada are particularly attractive for working holidays due to their significantly higher minimum wages, which have become a primary factor driving the labor outflow from Japan. Sluggish wage growth and continued falling exchange rates have made overseas working vacations a popular trend among Japanese people. Issues such as slow wage growth and a weak yen have led to Japan facing a potential outflow crisis of young labor.
Google Trends shows that Australia and Canada are currently the most popular countries for working holidays, with South Korea also surging in popularity recently. In addition to the many experiences shared online, good wages are the main reason for choosing these countries. The minimum wage in Tokyo, Japan, is 1,113 yen (approximately US$6.92) per hour. In contrast, Australia’s national minimum wage is US$24.1 per hour, and Canada’s federal minimum wage is US$17.3 per hour, which are 3.5 times and 2.5 times higher than Japan’s, respectively.
Google Trends points out that since records began in 2004, 2024 will be the most popular year for searches for the ワーホリ keyword in Japan. Among them, the areas most concerned about working holiday information are Okinawa Prefecture, Tokyo, Osaka Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, and Kanagawa Prefecture. Searchers are most concerned about working holiday visas, costs, work, language, and insurance issues. These data show that Japan’s major cities have the most people interested in working vacations and have begun researching and collecting relevant information.
According to the economic wealth data of prefectures released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan, after deducting basic expenses and commuting expenses from the disposable income of residents in 47 prefectures, the five lowest real disposable incomes are Tokyo, Okinawa, Osaka, Chiba and Kanagawa are almost the same as the areas with the most attention to working vacation information in Google Trends, indicating that the pressure of life in these areas is high, prompting people to start thinking about working vacations abroad.
Japan relies on imports for many commodities, raw materials, and even chemical fertilizers, and the weak yen has significantly increased the cost of living. In addition to the devaluation of the Japanese currency, which has prompted more and more young Japanese people to go overseas to earn more income, many pioneers who are on working holidays abroad post content about their income and lifestyle on social media, attracting more Japanese people. People are going overseas for working holidays, and this trend has reached its peak, and there is no downward trend yet.
