A robot can do that: Job listing for simple labor drops 30% in Japan

Need for social distancing finally pushes nation into digitalization

20200717N Automation

Employees wearing protective face guards work on an automobile assembly line at a factory of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus in Kawasaki, south of Tokyo. © Reuters

MOTOKAZU MATSUI, KYO KITAZUME and RYOTARO YAGUCHI, Nikkei staff writers

TOKYO -- For a country that is facing a major labor shortage, Japan has been slow in the digitalization of the workplace.

In manufacturing, for instance, skills have been passed on from generation to generation, from maestro to protege, forming the backbone of "Made in Japan."

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