Around 946,000 graduates entered the workforce Tuesday, joining company welcoming ceremonies on the first day of the 2003 business year amid lingering concerns over the economy and the Iraq war, the labor ministry said.
College and university graduates appear to have slightly better job prospects than last year, but high school graduates continue to face a severe job market, according to surveys by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry and the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry.
As of Feb. 1, 83.5 percent of prospective college graduates had signed up for jobs, marginally higher than the year before. Only 74.4 percent of expected high school graduates had found jobs as of Jan. 31, matching the record low from a year earlier.
Corporate bankruptcies and unemployment have been running at postwar highs due to the struggling economy.