Employment in Japan - IELTS Reading Answers

Nehasri Ravishenbagam

12 min read

Updated On Jan 21, 2026

Improve your IELTS reading score to a band 8 or higher by utilizing the 'Employment in Japan' reading passage and its answer key. Explore how to deal with three types of IELTS reading questions with the given tips and refine your overall reading strategy.

Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers

Passage for Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers
Questions for Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers
Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers with Location and Explanation
How to Solve the Question Types in the Employment in Japan Reading Passage?

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For many candidates, the IELTS General Reading test can feel intimidating at first. The clock is ticking, and the question types may seem confusing. But with consistent practice with passages like ‘Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers’, you will not only improve your reading ability but also build the confidence you need to stay calm under exam pressure.

Take the passage, ‘Employment in Japan’ below, and try more IELTS General reading practice tests. We have provided explanations, locations for the answers, and tips to help you handle the three different types of reading questions here.

Passage for Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers

Review the IELTS General Reading passage ‘Employment in Japan’ and be prepared to tackle similar topics in the reading section.

Look at the information about the 'Employment in Japan' and answer questions 1-15.

Employment in Japan

A Every autumn, when recruitment of new graduates and school leavers begins, major cities in Japan are flooded with students hunting for a job. Wearing suits for the first time, they run from one interview to another. The season is crucial for many students, as their whole lives may be determined during this period.

B In Japan, lifetime employment is commonly practised by large companies. While people working in small companies and those working for sub-contractors do not, in general, enjoy the advantages conferred by the large companies, there is a general expectation that employees will, in fact, remain more or less permanently in the same job.

C Unlike in many Western countries where companies employ people whose skills can be effective immediately, Japanese companies select applicants with potential who can be trained to become suitable employees. For this reason, recruiting employees is an important exercise for companies, as they invest a lot of time and money in training new staff. This is basically true both for factory workers and for professionals. Professionals who have studied subjects which are of immediate use in the workplace, such as industrial engineers, are very often placed in factories and transferred from one section to another. By gaining experience in several different areas and by working in close contact with workers, the engineers are believed, in the long run, to become more effective members of the company. Workers too feel more involved by working with professionals and by being allowed to voice their opinions. Loyalty is believed to be cultivated in this type of egalitarian working environment.

D Because of this system of training employees to be all-rounders, mobility between companies is low. Wages are set according to educational background or initial field of employment, ordinary graduates being employed in administration, engineers in engineering and design departments and so on. Both promotions and wage increases tend to be tied to seniority, though some differences may arise later on as a result of ability and business performance. Wages are paid monthly, and the net sum, after the deduction of tax, is usually paid directly into a bank account. As well as salary, a bonus is usually paid twice a year. This is a custom that dates back to the time when employers gave special allowances so that employees could properly celebrate bon, a Buddhist festival held in mid-July in Tokyo, but on other dates in other regions. The festival is held to appease the souls of ancestors. The second bonus is distributed at New Year. Recently, bonuses have also been offered as a way of allowing workers a share in the profits that their hard work has gained.

E Many female graduates complain that they are not given equal training and equal opportunity in comparison to male graduates. Japanese companies generally believe that female employees will eventually leave to get married and have children. It is also true that, as well as the still-existing belief among women themselves that nothing should stand in the way of child-rearing, the extended hours of work often do not allow women to continue their careers after marriage.

F Disappointed career-minded female graduates often opt to work for foreign firms. Since most male graduates prefer to join Japanese firms with their guaranteed security, foreign firms are often keen to employ female graduates as their potential tends to be greater than that of male applicants.

G Some men, however, do leave their companies in spite of future prospects, one reason being to take over the family business. The eldest sons in families that own family companies or businesses such as stores are normally expected to take over the business when their parents retire. It is therefore quite common to see a businessman, on succeeding to his parents' business, completely change his professional direction by becoming, for example, a shopkeeper.

H On the job, working relationships tend to be very close because of the long hours of work and years of service in common. Social life, in fact, is frequently based on the workplace. Restaurants and nomi-ya, "pubs", are always crowded at night with people enjoying an evening out with their colleagues. Many companies organise trips and sports days for their employees. Senior staff often play the role of mentor. This may mean becoming involved in the lives of junior staff in such things as marriage and the children's education.

I The average age of retirement is between 55 and 60. For most Westerners, retirement may be an eagerly awaited time to undertake such things as travel and hobbies. Many Japanese, however, simply cannot get used to the freedom of retirement and they look for ways of constructively using their time. Many look for new jobs, feeling that if they do not work they will be abandoned by society. This has recently led to the development in some municipalities of municipal job centres which advertise casual work such as cleaning and lawn mowing. Given that Japan is facing the problem of an increasingly ageing society, such activities may be vital in the future.

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Questions for Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers

The passage, Employment in Japan Reading Answers, consists of 15 questions, which showcase three different IELTS Reading question types. They are:

IELTS Reading Matching Headings (Q. 1-9)
IELTS Reading Sentence Completion (Q. 10-12)
IELTS Reading Multiple-Choice Question (Q. 13-15)

Questions 1-9

The Reading Passage has nine paragraphs A–I.

Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.

List of Phrases

i how new employees are used in a company

ii women and Japanese companies

iii why men sometimes resign from Japanese companies

iv permanency in employment in Japan

v recruiting season: who, when and where

vi the social aspect of work

vii the salary structure

viii the recruitment strategy of foreign firms

ix Japanese people after retirement

1 Section A

2 Section B

3 Section C

4 Section D

5 Section E

6 Section F

7 Section G

8 Section H

9 Section I

Questions 10-12

Complete the sentences below with words taken from the reading passage.

Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

10 Japanese employers believe that moving professionals within companies and listening to workers' views leads to .....................

11 Employees receive their wages monthly and a bonus .....................

12 Japanese workers often form close personal relationships and older staff may even become a ................... to junior staff.

Questions 13-15

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write the correct answers in boxes 13-15 on your answer sheet.

13 Company training in Japan

A is not important

B is for factory workers only

C is for professionals only

D is for all staff

14 Foreign firms are keen to employ Japanese women because

A the women are more intelligent than men

B the women that apply are more capable than the men that apply

C the women will be only short-term employees

D the women prefer guaranteed security

15 Japanese people continue to work after retirement because

A they need the income

B they miss working

C they assist in the family business

D they have no status outside employment

Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers with Location and Explanation

In this section, you will find all the answers, the locations of each answer in the passage 'Employment in Japan', and the keywords that will help you locate them. Go through them and evaluate your progress in achieving a high IELTS band score.

Question number	Answer	Explanation
1	v	In paragraph A, there’s a line that mentions, “when recruitment of new graduates and school leavers begins, major cities in Japan are flooded with students hunting for a job.” Since this paragraph discusses recruitments, it implies that the appropriate heading would be recruiting season: who, when, and where. Also, the recruitment happens in autumn, which is the reason why it is called recruiting season. Hence, the correct answer is “v.”
2	iv	Paragraph B discusses employment in Japan in more detail, where it states that “lifetime employment is commonly practised by large companies.” Also, “there is a general expectation that employees will, in fact, remain more or less permanently in the same job.” Therefore, we can deduce that this paragraph discusses permanent employment in Japan. Hence, the correct answer is “iv.”
3	i	According to paragraph C lines “Japanese companies select applicants with potential who can be trained to become suitable employees.” From this line, we can deduce that this paragraph talks about how new employees are used in a company. Hence, the correct answer is “i.”

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4	vii	Paragraph D puts forward the information that “wages are set according to educational background or initial field of employment.” From the term ‘wages’, we can infer that this paragraph discusses the salary structure of employees. Hence, the correct answer is “vii.”
5	ii	Paragraph E states that “many female graduates complain that they are not given equal training and equal opportunity in comparison to male graduates.” Therefore, this paragraph covers the information about women employees of Japanese companies. Hence, the correct answer is “ii.”
6	viii	In paragraph F, there’s a line that mentions, “disappointed career-minded female graduates often opt to work for foreign firms.” Moreover, “foreign firms are often keen to employ female graduates” This denotes the recruitment strategy of foreign firms. Hence, the correct answer is “viii.”
7	iii	Paragraph G conveys that “some men, however, do leave their companies in spite of future prospects, one reason being to take over the family business.” Therefore, this paragraph states the reasons why men sometimes resign from Japanese companies. Hence, the correct answer is “iii.”
8	vi	The initial lines of paragraph H state that “social life in fact is frequently based on the workplace.” From this line, we can deduce that this paragraph is referring to the social aspects of work. Hence, the correct answer is “vi.”
9	ix	The beginning of the paragraph I mention that “many Japanese, however, simply cannot get used to the freedom of retirement and they look for ways of constructively using their time.” Thus, this paragraph refers to the plans of Japanese people after retirement. Hence, the correct answer is “ix.”
10	loyalty	Paragraph C mentions that “workers too feel more involved by working with professionals and by being allowed to voice their opinions. Loyalty is believed to be cultivated in this type of egalitarian working environment.” From this line, we can deduce that, by allowing professionals to voice their opinions, loyalty is promoted within the employees towards the company. Hence, the correct answer is “loyalty.”
11	Twice a year	Paragraph D provides the information that “as well as salary, a bonus is usually paid twice a year.” This line confirms that employees received bonuses twice a year. Hence, the correct answer is “twice a year.”
12	mentor	According to paragraph H, “senior staff often play the role of mentor.” Therefore, this line confirms that old staff play the role of mentor to junior staff. Hence, the correct answer is “mentor.”
13	D	As per paragraph C, “they invest a lot of time and money in training new staff. This is basically true both for factory workers and for professionals.” As the company invests a lot of time in training all new staff, the correct answer is “D.”
14	B	The last two lines of paragraph F states that “Japanese firms with their guaranteed security, foreign firms are often keen to employ female graduates as their potential tends to be greater than that of male applicants.” Therefore, we can deduce that foreign companies are keen to hire female employees because they believe women who apply are more capable than men. Hence, the correct answer is “B.”
15	B	Paragraph I conveys that “Many Japanese, however, simply cannot get used to the freedom of retirement.” Japanese people cannot get used to retirement because they miss work. Hence, the correct answer is “B.”

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How to Solve the Question Types in the Employment in Japan Reading Passage?

Now, let’s check out some IELTS exam preparation tips for achieving a band score of 8+ for each question type in the Employment in Japan Reading Answers. This will help you learn how to approach each question type effectively.

Matching Heading

Read the list of headings carefully before the passage: Scan all headings and underline keywords such as recruitment, salary, retirement, women, social. This creates a mental map of themes, helping you recognise them quickly when reading paragraphs.
Read Paragraph A fully, not just the first line: For the first paragraph, read the entire section carefully to understand its main focus, not supporting examples. Paragraph A often introduces a broad idea that sets the tone for later sections.
Identify the paragraph’s purpose, not details: Ask: Is this paragraph explaining a system, a reason, a group of people, or a stage of life? Headings always match the central idea, not minor information.
Match using paraphrase, not identical words: The wording in headings will rarely appear exactly in the paragraph. Look for synonyms and implied meanings (e.g., training potential → how new employees are used).
Eliminate clearly wrong headings first: Cross out headings that mention topics not discussed at all in the paragraph (e.g., salary when no pay is mentioned). This narrows choices and reduces confusion between similar headings.
Treat each paragraph independently: Do not assume ideas continue logically from A to I. Each paragraph has one dominant theme, and headings should be chosen without relying on previous answers.

Sentence Completion

Read each sentence and predict the answer type: Decide whether the gap needs a noun, noun phrase, or abstract idea (e.g., result, frequency, role). This grammatical prediction prevents you from choosing unsuitable phrases.
Locate the paragraph that discusses the idea: Sentence completion questions follow text order, so locate the paragraph where the topic is explained. Do not scan the whole passage randomly.
Read the relevant sentence slowly and carefully: The answer usually appears directly after a cause or explanation, often following linking phrases like leads to, results in, is believed to. Read word-by-word to avoid copying extra words.
Copy words exactly from the passage: You must use exact wording, including singular/plural form. Even grammatically correct paraphrases will be marked wrong.
Check the word limit strictly: Ensure your answer contains no more than three words. Articles and prepositions count as words, so trim unnecessary additions.

Multiple Choice Question

Read the question stem before the options: Focus on what is being tested (e.g., training, recruitment, retirement). This prevents being distracted by detailed but irrelevant options.
Scan for the relevant paragraph: Each multiple-choice question refers to one specific paragraph. Once located, read the paragraph carefully instead of searching for matching words.
Identify the writer’s exact statement: Correct answers restate the writer’s idea accurately and completely. Partial truths or exaggerated interpretations are common traps.
Eliminate extreme or unsupported options: Options using words like only, always, never are often incorrect unless the passage clearly supports them. Remove answers that add information not mentioned in the text.
Compare remaining options line-by-line: Re-read the sentence in the passage and match meaning, not vocabulary. Choose the option that reflects the writer’s intention most precisely.

In conclusion, the reading section requires not only strong comprehension skills but also the ability to navigate complex language, abstract concepts, and diverse question types effectively. Therefore, it is recommended to practice IELTS Reading topics for General and Academic, such as ‘Employment in Japan IELTS Reading Answers’. This practice will help you build confidence and develop the reading precision that is essential for achieving a high IELTS band score.

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