Turning away from National Public Service Jobs: Improving Working Conditions Alone is Insufficient

Editorial

15:39 JST, September 12, 2025

The bold recommendations for improved working conditions are aimed at curbing the serious trend of national public employees leaving their jobs.

However, simply raising salaries and allowances will not prevent them from leaving their jobs nor increase the number of applicants. To enable national public employees to work with a strong sense of mission, the relationship between politics and bureaucracy and the outdated personnel system should be reviewed.

The National Personnel Authority has recommended to the Diet and the Cabinet that working conditions for national public employees be improved.

Monthly salaries will see an average increase of about ¥15,000. Furthermore, while a work adjustment allowance is currently provided to those at or below the level of division deputy directors who handle Diet-related duties, this allowance will be expanded to include vice ministers and bureau directors general. The amount of the allowance will vary by position, increasing by up to over ¥50,000.

These recommendations are aimed at preventing mid-career and younger bureaucrats from resigning by bringing their compensation closer to that of major private companies. Among career-track bureaucrats in general administrative positions, the number who have resigned within less than 10 years of joining has exceeded 100 for six consecutive years since fiscal 2018.

Many are said to use the knowledge and skills cultivated in government ministries and agencies to move to higher-paying private companies. From the perspective of the ministries and agencies, this represents a significant blow, as these individuals are leaving just as they are poised to become core members in policy planning.

The recommendations also set the starting monthly salary for career-track bureaucrats, including work adjustment and other allowances, at ¥301,200. While this includes the allowances, it will mark the first time the starting salary exceeds ¥300,000.

The number of applicants for career-track bureaucrat posts in the national civil service recruitment examination was about 18,000 in fiscal 2024, a decrease of nearly 5,000 from 10 years ago. If capable young people are shunning central government ministries and agencies, which serve as think tanks to support the nation, it risks undermining national strength.

In addition to improving working conditions, there are other challenges to be addressed.

Mid-career and younger bureaucrats are overwhelmingly busy with the practice of “question gathering,” in which they have to listen to details of questions in advance of lawmakers asking them in the Diet. In particular, it is not uncommon for opposition lawmakers to submit questions late, forcing bureaucrats to work for a long time until late at night preparing responses.

In fact, during this year’s ordinary Diet session, the average time bureaucrats finished drafting responses was nearly 2 a.m. on the day a committee met.

Both ruling and opposition parties have repeatedly confirmed their commitment to “strive for prompt notification of questions,” However, it is troubling that there has been no improvement at all. One idea is to consider making public the names of lawmakers who provide late notifications.

The seniority-based personnel system, which gives top priority to years since entering ministries and agencies, is out of step with the times. A mechanism needs to be actively introduced to promote individuals to key positions based on the substance of their policy proposals and their actual performance.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 12, 2025)