No.4035
03/19/2026

Employment Services (Former Human Resources Business) Market in Japan Through 2040: Key Research Findings 2026

The Total Market Size of Five Employment Services Projected to Reach 11.4525 Trillion Yen Under the Status Quo Scenario, and 13.979 Trillion Yen Under the AI Empowerment Scenario

Yano Research Institute (the President, Takashi Mizukoshi) conducted a survey of the five domestic employment services markets and revealed the market size forecast through fiscal year 2040 in two scenarios.


Forecast of the Total Size of Five Employment Services Market under the Status Quo and AI Empowerment Scenarios
Forecast of the Total Size of Five Employment Services Market under the Status Quo and AI Empowerment Scenarios

Market Overview

The research forecasted the total market size of five domestic employment services through FY2040. The five markets are temporary staffing, white-collar job recruiting, outplacement services, job information services, and gig work staffing and platforms. Two scenarios were provided for the market size forecast: status quo and AI empowerment. The forecast focused on job displacement caused by the prevalence of AI tools and the growing use of robotics, and the labor mobility among middle-aged and senior workers.
Based on service provider sales, the total market size of the five domestic employment services is projected to reach 11.4525 trillion yen under the status quo scenario, and 13.979 trillion yen under the AI empowerment scenario.

Noteworthy Topics

Workstyle of Seniors and Demand from Companies

Many seniors are motivated to work primarily to be part of society, in addition to financial reasons. Therefore, they prefer flexible work arrangements, such as part-time jobs with shorter hours or short-term assignments of two to three days per week. Since temporary staffing services can meet these conditions, there is high demand for them. Gig work is also expanding.
Currently, corporate demand for senior workers is increasing, due to shortages of young workers and workers with specific skills. There is a particularly high demand for IT legacy technology experts, skilled construction industry craftsmen, and top-tier salespeople with a network of major company executives.
The negative impact of AI proliferation on senior employment is currently limited. However, demand for white-collar back-office work and management positions is expected to shrink by FY2040, due to replacement by AI.

Future Outlook

If the reskilling status of middle-aged and senior workers remains the same (status quo), the employment service markets are projected to experience a downturn after FY2035.
Corporate demand for white-collar jobs, including back-office work and administrative duties, is expected to shrink due to an increase in AI-driven job replacements. Conversely, there will be a greater demand for AI enablers, which are professionals who enable and implement the efficient use of AI and/or robotics. In the long run, improving the talent supply is crucial to expanding the employment service market. This can be achieved by providing extensive training programs for temporary staff at temporary staffing service providers, and reskilling programs for middle-aged and senior workers at various employment service providers.

Research Outline

1.Research Period: October to December 2025
2.Research Object: Five markets related to employment services (temporary staffing, white-collar job recruiting, outplacement services, job information services, and gig work staffing and platforms)
3.Research Methogology: Face-to-face interviews (including online interviews) by expert researchers, survey by telephone and emails, and literature research

What are Five Employment Service Markets?

Yano Research Institute has changed the name of its report from "Human Resources Business Market" to "Employment Services Market." Apologies for any inconvenience.

This research defines the five employment service markets as follows: 1) temporary staffing, 2) white-collar job recruitment, 3) outplacement services, 4) job posting services, and 5) gig work staffing and platforms.

<Products and Services in the Market>

temporary staffing, white-collar job recruiting, outplacement services, job information services, and gig work staffing and platforms

Contact Us

©2021 Yano Research Institute Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
The copyright and all other rights pertaining to this report belong to Yano Research Institute.
Please contact our PR team when quoting the report contents for the purpose other than media coverage.
Depending on the purpose of using our report, we may ask you to present your sentences for confirmation beforehand.