Commentary: The rise and fall of the ideal worker model in Japan

. The model of work that supported Japan’s economic rise in the postwar period is meeting its demise.

Japanese human resource management is best understood as a system of complementary and self-reinforcing institutions, such as lifetime employment and seniority-based wages. These essential features of Japanese human resource management became institutionalised during the postwar high-growth period. Workers’ tastes and preferences are also changing. The dependence between worker and employer is weakening. A 2024 survey found that only 21 per cent of young people want to work for the same company until retirement, compared with 35 per cent in 2014. Workers want more flexibility in time and place, especially after COVID-19.than ever before, who bring with them different work norms, values and expectations that may not be compatible with the profile of the old ideal.

In spite of these ongoing changes, some companies still cling to the ideal worker model. Organisational inertia can be overpowering, and social norms do not change overnight. Japanese companies and Japanese culture in general are not known for their flexibility. Language skill requirements impede the employment of foreign workers. A 2022 government survey found that the level of Japanese required by companies is too difficult for many international students who wish to work in Japan. A 2021 survey found that 75 per cent of Japanese companies demanded that non-Japanese job seekers meet or exceed the highest level on the country’s standardised language proficiency test.

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