Employment rate, 15–64 during each prime minister's tenure
Every prime minister since 1991, ranked by how the employment rate, 15–64 changed from their first day in office. Politare shows what happened during a tenure; it does not claim the office-holder caused it.
| # | Prime minister | In office | Total | Per year | Chart |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LDP Shinzō Abe | 26 Dec 2012 – 16 Sep 2020 | +6.4 pp Q3 2012 → Q2 2020 | +0.8 pp/yr | |
| 2 | LDP Fumio Kishida | 10 Nov 2021 – 11 Nov 2024 | +1.6 pp Q3 2021 → Q3 2024 | +0.5 pp/yr | |
| 3 | LDP Yoshihide Suga | 16 Sep 2020 – 10 Nov 2021 | +0.9 pp Q2 2020 → Q3 2021 | +0.8 pp/yr | |
| 4 | LDP Shinzō Abe | 26 Sep 2006 – 26 Sep 2007 | +0.9 pp Q2 2006 → Q2 2007 | +0.9 pp/yr | |
| 5 | DPJ Naoto Kan | 8 Jun 2010 – 2 Sep 2011 | +0.9 pp Q1 2010 → Q2 2011 | +0.7 pp/yr | |
| 6 | LDP Junichiro Koizumi | 26 Apr 2001 – 26 Sep 2006 | +0.8 pp Q1 2001 → Q2 2006 | +0.2 pp/yr | |
| 7 | LDP Shigeru Ishiba | 11 Nov 2024 – 21 Oct 2025 | +0.6 pp Q3 2024 → Q3 2025 | +0.6 pp/yr | |
| 8 | LDP Ryutaro Hashimoto | 11 Jan 1996 – 30 Jul 1998 | +0.4 pp Q4 1995 → Q2 1998 | +0.2 pp/yr | |
| 9 | LDP Yoshirō Mori | 5 Apr 2000 – 26 Apr 2001 | +0.4 pp Q1 2000 → Q1 2001 | +0.4 pp/yr | |
| 10 | LDP Kiichi Miyazawa | 5 Nov 1991 – 9 Aug 1993 | +0.1 pp Q3 1991 → Q2 1993 | 0.0 pp/yr |
Showing 10 of 15 tenures.
Sorted by total, highest first. Every row is indexed to the last quarter complete before the first day in office ("from" marks a start that had to move because that period had no data, or because the period cut it); Levels are per cent changes, rates are differences in pp; "per year" compounds levels and divides rates. Tenures with under 12 months, or under three observations, are left out. % of the population aged 15–64 · Statistics Bureau of Japan labour force survey via the OECD (infra-annual labour statistics), seasonally adjusted · Japan data · as of Sep 2026.