Tokyo to provide shelter to jobless during holiday

The city of Tokyo is planning to offer shelter and other help to homeless jobseekers during the New Year holiday period.

The move follows a spontaneous holiday aid program last year that saw volunteers giving food and shelter to those affected by the severe recession.

Hundreds of unemployed workers gathered at a tent village that had been set up by volunteer groups in a park in central Tokyo, prompting some local authorities to give up their holidays and pitch in with assistance.

No tent village is planned this year. Instead, the city government will open an accommodation facility in Shibuya, central Tokyo, to up to 500 people.

Only those who have registered with public job placement offices can apply to stay between December 28th and January 4th.

During that period, help will be on hand to find jobs and address other problems the jobless and homeless face.

The recession has eased since last year, but unemployment remains high in Japan.