Does Japan have America’s ability to attract immigrants?

If we study the history of American immigration and workers, we can see how President Trump’s current policies aiming to restrict immigration will affect America going forward. Moreover, this is in no way someone else’s business: there are a great many lessons here for Japan.

America is a country that was built by immigrants in the first place, and almost no restrictions were placed on immigration until the end of the nineteenth century. In the nineteenth century, the transport revolution took place. Transportation costs were lowered by the introduction of railroads and steamships, among others, and the “age of mass migration” began as a result, leading to the globalization of the world. America was the destination of the largest number of migrants.

Migration to America reached its peak from the end of the nineteenth century to the twentieth century. Migration of Japanese people increased; but the most significant change was that migration from the traditional source countries of northern and western Europe, such as Britain and Germany, was overtaken by a large-scale influx of immigrants from eastern and southern Europe, such as Italy and Russia, in a short period of time. Absorbing European immigrants into America’s industrial society became the driving force behind the birth of the world’s leading industrial power. We can say that the development of the American capitalist economy was due precisely to this supply of labor in the form of immigrants.

On the other hand, it was certainly not the case that these immigrants were able to fit smoothly into American society. The former immigrants from northern and western Europe formed the WASP (White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant) social class. Although the new immigrants from southern and eastern Europe were also white, friction arising from differences in religion and culture developed between them and the earlier immigrants.

Furthermore, the WASP class, who feared that their own position might be threatened by an increase in immigrants, made ever stronger moves to restrict immigration. Labor unions were at the center of this movement. To the labor unions, new immigrants appeared as competitors who would lower their wage levels, worsen their working environments, and bring about job losses.

As a result, the Quota Immigration Act, which included separate quotas for each country of origin and classified entrants to the country according to their place of origin and their individual qualities, was enacted in 1924. Under this Act, Japanese were designated as foreigners who could not be naturalized, and there was a de facto ban on immigration by Japanese people. For these reasons, it is generally known as the Japanese Exclusion Act.

It was after the World War II, in 1965, that this Immigration Act was revised and the system of separate quotas for each country of origin was abolished. At that time, in response to a demand for labor from industry, priority categories were established for skilled workers, and the number of immigrants from Asia increased rapidly. During the Cold War, as the competition for human resources between the U.S and the Soviet Union intensified, the country also become positive towards accepting immigrants.

If we look at America’s history of immigration, then, we see that the country’s economy grew while accepting migrant workers from around the world, responding to the demand to expand the labor force. On the other hand, when various tensions caused by the flow of migrants mounted, and the labor force became saturated, momentum grew to restrict or exclude immigrants. Therefore, we can look at the history of America’s immigration policy as one aspect of the history of the capitalist economy itself.

Why, on the other hand, would people seek to migrate to America, despite restrictions and friction? The reason is that America is sufficiently attractive.

The migrant workers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries had the dream of owning their own land and becoming independent farmers. Furthermore, wage levels were high. There were opportunities to make one’s fortune and better one’s social position through one’s own efforts, to a degree that was unimaginable in Europe.

Today, too, wages in America are relatively high. For example, for Hispanic immigrants, the wages they can earn in America may be five to ten times higher than those in their home countries. The same is true for highly skilled workers from India. In a global capitalist economy, these kinds of attractive features appeal to people, and so it is natural that they promote the migration of people.

Turning to Japan, then, what do we find here? The decline in the birthrate and aging of the population are advancing, leading to a rapid decline not only of the population as a whole, but of the working age population. Also, Japan cannot keep going without foreign workers. Until now, third-generation Japanese descendants from Latin America and foreign workers using the Technical Intern Training Program have filled the gap in the labor force. A new residency status, “Specified Skilled Worker”, has also been established, but the number of people using this type of visa is still low, and so it is difficult to say that it is functioning. As you can tell by looking at convenience stores or bars, foreign workers, mostly from Asia, have already arrived in Japan, but will this situation actually continue?

Wages continue to rise not only in China, but also in the steadily growing economies of Southeast Asia. Will Japan be able to go on paying higher wages than these? Also, will immigrants be able to work their way up within Japanese society?

There is also the language barrier. Compared with English, Japanese poses a much greater hurdle. We are forced to say that in the medium to long term, the relative merits and attractiveness of migrating to and working in Japan will fall.

Of course, there are also many problems with America’s immigration policy. Nevertheless, the immigration history of America, which has continued to attract migrant workers despite various frictions and conflicts, surely shows us that Japan needs to offer similar attractions.

For this, not only the enhancement of policies for the acceptance of foreign workers but also worker skills development, such as Japanese language education and advance training, will be important. We also need to deepen our knowledge of Japanese and overseas culture and history, building a society based on coexistence. Since our country is one of the global leaders in terms of safety and security, we surely need to tell the whole world about the attractive features of Japan.

At present, protectionism and a focus on “putting one’s own country first” are on the rise in America and around the world. This tendency may accelerate after the coronavirus shock. However, history tells us that isolation from the world leads to misfortune. In my opinion, countries which develop bring together people from around the world, and have the tolerance to accept them.

It is necessary to build constructive policies based on objective facts, without being swayed by emotive arguments.

* The information contained herein is current as of June 2020.
* The contents of articles on Meiji.net are based on the personal ideas and opinions of the author and do not indicate the official opinion of Meiji University.
* I work to achieve SDGs related to the educational and research themes that I am currently engaged in.