Quake damage might cost 450,000 to 650,000 jobs in Japan: study

TOKYO, May 17 Kyodo -
Some 450,000 to 650,000 jobs could be lost throughout Japan as a result of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, according to a study released Tuesday by a private think tank.
The number of jobs lost might worsen as radiation fears stemming from the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant spread further, said the Japan Research institute, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.
Some 140,000 to 200,000 workers may have lost their jobs in the three prefectures hardest hit by the disaster -- Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima -- where local farming and fisheries industries in particular incurred tremendous damage, according to the report.
Some 120,000 to 250,000 jobs might be lost as automobile production is being disrupted due to the damage to the parts supply chain, the institute added.
If electricity use is curtailed by 15 percent compared with a year ago for three months this summer as urged by the government in the eastern and northeastern regions, employees of smaller firms could bear the brunt of personnel retrenchment and more jobs of non-permanent workers could be shed, according to the study.
About 180,000 jobs could be curtailed if uncertainty persists about power supply in summer next year and beyond, the research agency said.
The institute also warned that a dramatic decrease in foreign visitors to Japan presents a serious concern on the labor scene, as companies in the tourism industry are going under.
In order to turn around the economies in disaster-hit northeastern Japan, efforts should be made to create jobs by strengthening the local industrial structure anchored on fisheries and the seafood processing businesses, it said.
The institute also suggested that local authorities across Japan take the initiative in providing temporary employment in their areas for disaster victims until infrastructure is rebuilt in quake-hit regions.