中英對照讀新聞》Japan records biggest jump in foreign workers 日本外籍勞工人數創下最大增幅

日本人口老化導致勞動力短缺，當局正逐步開放更多外籍勞工以緩解問題。（法新社）

◎陳成良

Japan saw its biggest year-on-year jump in foreign workers since records began, government data showed Friday, as the country seeks to address labour shortages exacerbated by its ageing population.

日本政府週五公布的數據顯示，該國外籍勞工人數出現自有記錄以來最大年度增幅。隨著人口老化加劇勞動力短缺，日本正試圖緩解這一問題。

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In October 2024, the nation’s foreign workforce stood at 2.3 million － an increase of around 254,000 people from a year earlier, labour ministry data showed.

根據厚生勞動省的數據，截至2024年10月，日本的外籍勞工總數達到230萬人，較前一年增加約25.4萬人。

That marks the biggest jump since records began in 2008, and is the latest in a series of annual record-breaking increases.

這是自2008年開始統計以來的最大增幅，並延續了外籍勞工人數連年創新高的趨勢。

The total has jumped around threefold from a decade ago, in 2014, when the number of foreign workers stood at 788,000.

與10年前的2014年相比，外籍勞工總數已增長約3倍，當時這一數字為78.8萬人。

Japan has the world’s second-oldest population after Monaco, according to the World Bank, and its relatively strict immigration rules mean it faces growing labour shortages.

根據世界銀行的數據，日本是全球老齡化程度僅次於摩納哥的國家。由於日本的移民政策相對嚴格，該國正面臨日益嚴峻的勞動力短缺問題。

新聞辭典

year-on-year：形容詞，同比，與前一年同期相比的變化數據，常用於經濟、統計和財務報告中。例句：The company reported a year-on-year increase in revenue. （該公司報告了同比增長的營收。）

exacerbate：動詞，使惡化，使加劇。例句：Air pollution can exacerbate respiratory diseases such as asthma. （空氣污染可能會加重氣喘等呼吸道疾病。）

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