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A record number of Japanese households were living on welfare benefits in December, reflecting a tough job market.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry says more than 1.3 million households were living on welfare benefits in December, up about 14,000 from the previous month.
Of these 14,000, the elderly made up 2,417 households, single mother households 1,480, and households with handicapped people 1,146. An additional 6,013 households, the largest percentage of all, fell into the category of "others," which includes households with jobless adults.
The rise means 1.81 million people were on welfare in December, up 20,000 from a month earlier. The ministry says the number of households living on welfare has been increasing since early 2009, due to Japan's worsening job market. Over the 12 months to December, the number grew by 147,000 households. That 12.7 percent increase represents more than 204,000 people.
The ministry says it will make it easier for the unemployed to get loans or rent subsidies, to stop welfare enrollment rising.
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