Firms struggle to secure IT workers

By Yasuaki Kobayashi and Shota Mizuno / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers A shortage of human resources in information technology (IT) -- including software developers and cybersecurity experts -- is becoming a serious issue. Companies across a wide range of industries using IT are struggling to secure talented workers, while shopping and services are increasingly going online and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) is expanding. If the issue is not addressed promptly, it may have a negative impact on the government's growth strategy. "We cannot debug our programs because of a labor shortage," lamented an engineer for a leading electronics maker who has been working on a project to develop an AI-equipped product. The engineer said the development of the product has not progressed well and the start of its sales has been delayed by more than a year.