TOKYO, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Japan's unemployment rate stood at 2.4 percent in May, unchanged from the previous month, government data showed on Friday, as the job market remained at its tightest in decades.

The unemployment rate for men was unchanged from April at 2.5 percent, while for women it fell 0.1 percentage point to 2.2 percent, according to Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said the job availability ratio was 1.62, down slightly from 1.63 in April. That translates to 162 job openings for every 100 job seekers.

Japan continues to face labor shortages as its population ages rapidly, the data show. The number of people in work in the report was 67.32 million, the highest since comparable data began in 1953.

"While the employment situation is steadily improving and the jobless rate remains at its lowest level in 26 years, there wasn't a major development" in the reporting month, an Ministry of Internal Affairs official said.

The proportion of the working age population aged 15 to 64 with a job reached 77.6 percent, up 0.6 percentage points from a year ago. For men in that age range it was 84.2 percent, and for women 70.8 percent, the highest since 1968.

The seasonally adjusted number of unemployed in May was 1.62 million, down 60,000 from the previous month.