Japan first-half labor-shortage bankruptcies hit record 240

Labor-shortage bankruptcies in Japan reached 240 in the April–September first half of fiscal 2026, up 17.0% from the same period a year earlier and the highest for a fiscal first half since the survey began in 2013, according to reports from Livedoor News, Yahoo! News Japan and Asahi Shimbun. Livedoor News said the previous first-half record was 205 cases a year earlier. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]

Of the total, 130 cases — more than half, at 54.1% — were attributed to rising personnel costs, a 1.7 times increase from a year earlier, Livedoor News reported, adding that this was up 75.6%. Asahi Shimbun, citing Tokyo Shoko Research, gave the same 1.7-fold figure and said the average wage increase for regular employees at small and midsize companies reached 4.29% between April 2025 and April 2026, with the research firm saying “wage-hike pressure” is adding to the worsening cash flow of smaller companies. Livedoor News described “wage-hike fatigue” as becoming evident. [ 1 , 3 ]

By company size, 159 cases, or 66.2%, involved firms with capital of less than 10 million yen, up 33.6% year on year, and bankruptcies accounted for 229 of the cases, or 95.4%, up 23.7%, Livedoor News reported. By industry, services and others accounted for 91 cases, up 21.3%, and construction 55 cases, up 5.7%, together making up 60.8% of the total, with bankruptcies concentrated in labor-intensive sectors. [ 1 ]

Labor-shortage bankruptcies bottomed at 26 in the April–September half of fiscal 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and have exceeded the same period a year earlier for five consecutive years, Livedoor News and Asahi Shimbun reported. Livedoor News said minimum wages were raised across Japan from October, and that the wage gap between large companies and small and midsize firms is widening. [ 1 , 3 ]

The outlets describe the record run differently: Livedoor News said the first-half figure marked a record high and exceeded the year-earlier period for a fifth straight year, while Asahi Shimbun said the record was renewed for a fourth consecutive year. Livedoor News said the survey covers nationwide corporate failures with debt of at least 10 million yen related to labor shortages — difficulty hiring, employee departures or rising personnel costs — and excludes cases related to a lack of a successor. Only Asahi Shimbun named the research organization, Tokyo Shoko Research. [ 1 , 3 ]

Yahoo! News Japan reproduced the same 240-case figure and carried a separate item that 51.3% of companies were short of regular employees, above 50% for a fourth consecutive July, alongside reader-facing items including questions and polls on which industries are most prone to such failures. [ 2 ]