The Japan Times<p>While Japan is allowing more underperforming businesses to fail, the accounts suggest the worker shortage is threatening firms that are otherwise robust, including those that have invested in automation and creative hiring. <a href="https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/12/24/japan/japan-labor-crunch-small-town/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">japantimes.co.jp/news/2024/12/</span><span class="invisible">24/japan/japan-labor-crunch-small-town/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/japan" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>japan</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/depopulation" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>depopulation</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/jobs" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>jobs</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/rurallife" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>rurallife</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/ino" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ino</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/kochi" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>kochi</span></a></p>