Cautiously, an Aging Japan Warms to Foreign Workers.

The article reports that Japan is beginning to loosen its immigration and employment policies in response to concerns about an aging workforce. Rural agricultural and textile jobs, as well as assembly line work, is increasingly being done by foreign labor. Japan has a long history of restricting or banning immigration, which many Japanese say accounts for the country's stability and good economy. But views have changed rapidly as the falling birth rate becomes more evident.