[Actual State of Labor Shortages in SMEs] 80% of Companies with 50+ Employees Answer it is a 'Management Issue'. Mid-career Hiring is Over 40%, While Hiring of New Grads/Foreigners Slumps to 10% Range.
FORVAL INC. published a report revealing that 80% of SMEs with 50+ employees view labor shortage as a major issue, heavily relying on mid-career hires.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 10, 2026 at 19:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 11, 2026 at 00:28 (5h 28m after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 20, 2026 at 00:19 (215h 50m after Collected)
FORVAL INC. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Masanori Nakajima, hereinafter "FORVAL"), a group of "corporate doctors (next-generation management consultants)" that supports ESG management with a visualization and hands-on approach under the philosophy of "Creating a new world with 'new commonsense'," announces that its FORVAL GDX Research Institute will publish the "BLUE REPORT May Issue" on Friday, April 10, 2026. This report investigates the current state of labor shortages in SMEs, their responses, and specific initiatives to secure human resources.
[Objective of this report: "To understand the current state of labor shortages in SMEs, their responses, and specific initiatives to secure human resources"]
In recent years, the labor shortage in SMEs has reportedly become more severe. The 2025 edition of the SME White Paper (*) pointed out that "the shortage of human resources in small and medium-sized enterprises and small businesses remains severe," and "looking by industry, the sense of shortage is particularly strong in the 'construction industry'." It also indicates that related bankruptcies due to labor shortages are on the rise.
Furthermore, the white paper describes the harsh situation faced by these businesses as "increased production and investment costs due to the continuation of the weak yen and high prices, the arrival of a 'world with interest rates,' and a structural labor shortage." For companies to secure new human resources, they must secure personnel expenses for new hires, which requires improving their management capabilities and securing financial resources. On the other hand, there is also pressure to raise wages for existing employees against the backdrop of recent high prices. Initiatives such as utilizing diverse human resources, introducing flexible work styles, and improving operational efficiency and productivity through the promotion of DX are also important. Faced with such a severe business environment, it can be said that companies facing labor shortages are forced to make difficult steering decisions.
So, how severe is the labor shortage situation in SMEs? And what initiatives are companies taking in response? The institute now reports the results of a fact-finding survey on SMEs regarding the current state of labor shortages, their responses, and specific initiatives to secure human resources.
(*) SME Agency "2025 Edition 'SME White Paper'" https://www.chusho.meti.go.jp/pamflet/hakusyo/2025/PDF/chusho.html
● For details of this report, please refer here.
URL: https://gdx-research.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/bluereport_202605.pdf
Summary
■ The larger the number of employees, the more companies feel that labor shortage is a management issue.
[Objective of this report: "To understand the current state of labor shortages in SMEs, their responses, and specific initiatives to secure human resources"]
In recent years, the labor shortage in SMEs has reportedly become more severe. The 2025 edition of the SME White Paper (*) pointed out that "the shortage of human resources in small and medium-sized enterprises and small businesses remains severe," and "looking by industry, the sense of shortage is particularly strong in the 'construction industry'." It also indicates that related bankruptcies due to labor shortages are on the rise.
Furthermore, the white paper describes the harsh situation faced by these businesses as "increased production and investment costs due to the continuation of the weak yen and high prices, the arrival of a 'world with interest rates,' and a structural labor shortage." For companies to secure new human resources, they must secure personnel expenses for new hires, which requires improving their management capabilities and securing financial resources. On the other hand, there is also pressure to raise wages for existing employees against the backdrop of recent high prices. Initiatives such as utilizing diverse human resources, introducing flexible work styles, and improving operational efficiency and productivity through the promotion of DX are also important. Faced with such a severe business environment, it can be said that companies facing labor shortages are forced to make difficult steering decisions.
So, how severe is the labor shortage situation in SMEs? And what initiatives are companies taking in response? The institute now reports the results of a fact-finding survey on SMEs regarding the current state of labor shortages, their responses, and specific initiatives to secure human resources.
(*) SME Agency "2025 Edition 'SME White Paper'" https://www.chusho.meti.go.jp/pamflet/hakusyo/2025/PDF/chusho.html
● For details of this report, please refer here.
URL: https://gdx-research.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/bluereport_202605.pdf
Summary
■ The larger the number of employees, the more companies feel that labor shortage is a management issue.