The impact of worker-financed training: Evidence from early- and mid-career workers in Japan

This study examines the determinants and effects of worker-financed training, a form of individual work-related continuing education, using a unique survey of Japanese workers. The results show that workers who are older, have children, who work as temporary staff or at small companies, all of whom have less access to firm-provided training, are also less likely to initiate worker-financed training at least in part due to long work hours which limits participation. On the other hand, workers who receive firm-provided training at the workplace or even informal guidance from their supervisors about specific required skills are more likely to also participate in worker-financed training, suggesting that experiences at the workplace can affect a worker’s self-learning activities outside of work. Additionally, we found that although participation in worker-financed training tends not to lead to any short-term increase in wages or job changes, it can lead to positive effects on a person’s working life through improved job skills or job tasks, which suggests that it might have positive effects in the workplace in the long run.