Japanese youths and their search for stability and security: Profile of young people in distress

A variety of recent surveys are shedding light--in their own way--on what today's Japanese youths are really like.

First is the growing number of youths who are not working. Situations differ from person to person. Some are not given the opportunity to work as a result of the narrowing down of job openings; some are confused, not knowing what they want to do or what their goals are; and some simply do not want to work.

Whatever the reason, many of these young people are choosing to follow the path of "freeters" or job-hoppers, at least for the time being. A survey by the Japan Staffing Services Association showed that the average number of people who were actually dispatched to work on a temporary basis reached 270,840 per month between April and June of this year, up 13.8% from the same period last year.

New recruits who were hired as full-time employees under these circumstances show a pattern of seeking more stability and security. According to the Sanno Institute of Management's 2004 survey, 42% and 61%, respectively, of new recruits said they wanted to keep the seniority system and the lifetime employment system in place. Both of these figures are the second highest recorded during the past decade. On the other hand, 54% of the respondents--the highest rate ever recorded during the past decade--said they would prefer not to be paid according to the annual salary scheme.

Japan is said to have been instituting structural changes centering on administrative and financial reforms, and the trend seen in the business/economic sector is to seek the creation of an industrial society that is even more efficient and internationally competitive than in the past. Why, then, are young people, who would be expected to be the driving force behind this trend, seeking security and stability instead? Where does this stability-seeking behavior come from?

Although it is not easy to precisely analyze the reason for their increased penchant for stability and security, the following may provide some clues.

According to a survey on mental health programs targeting corporate employees in charge of personnel and labor affairs, whose results were released in August by the Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development's Mental Health Research Institute, approximately 60% of those polled said that incidence of mental illness within the company has been on the rise over the past three years. What is more, by age group, the largest number of people afflicted with such illnesses are in their 30s, with the respondents citing psychological burdens/stress at work, dissatisfaction with the company's treatment including pay and benefits, anxiety about life after mandatory retirement, and other reasons.

Two facts emerge from this survey: that the demands on individuals at their current workplace have become much heavier, and that employees who joined the company after them are made aware of current conditions.

Another element that should not be overlooked is the effect of corporate restructuring on middle-aged to older employees that has continued over the past 4 or 5 years, mostly in large corporations. Many young people have seen, or are related to, middle-aged and older individuals being forced out of their jobs. Although Japan is believed to be a rich country, we often see homeless people in urban parks.

It is no wonder if these people, as a result of what they have experienced after becoming aware of these facts, have opted to seek more stability and security.

With the Japanese birthrate continuing to fall and the population set to shrink, it may be that it is unreasonable to blindly expect young people to make excessive efforts or show aggressive and competitive behavior.