From our other sites
The story
In a nationwide Yomiuri Shimbun opinion poll, only 51% of respondents agreed that “working hard is a virtue,” with the figure dropping to 43% among those aged 18–39, where a majority (56%) disagreed. Among those 60 and older, 58% agreed, making clear that support for “hard work as a virtue” declines the younger the age group. On 5ch, opinions split between those reading the results as declining motivation among younger generations and those seeing it as proof that wages and working conditions don’t match the effort required, with plenty of comments also pointing the finger at management’s responsibility.
The Yomiuri Shimbun conducted a nationwide opinion poll on “ways of working” (via mail survey). Only 51% said they believe working hard is a virtue — falling short of half — and the figure was lower the younger the respondent. 47% said they did not believe so.
[Graph] Do you think working hard is a virtue?
Japanese society has long held that working diligently is a virtue. Broken down by age, 58% of those 60 and older agreed, compared to just 47% — under half — among those 40 to 59, and 43% among those 18 to 39. Disagreement was highest among 18-to-39-year-olds at 56%, followed by 51% among those 40 to 59, and 40% among those 60 and older.
Source: yomiuri.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
I have zero sympathy for the bottom-tier people in my own generation.
In the "Employment Ice Age" threads (Japan's long-running term for the generation that graduated into the 1990s–2000s hiring freeze), the guys saying "it's because of the Ice Age" are
just blaming the era and society for their own lack of effort — and I know that, because I'm from that same generation.
It's been 30 years since then. The question is: what have the bottom-tier people been doing this whole time?
Blaming the young for the ranking dropping every year, huh
I have no idea what you're even saying.
When you were young, where did you graduate from and where did you get hired?
get into a good elementary school,
get into a good middle school,
get into a good high school,
get into a good university,
become an elite career civil servant,
get a good wife,
raise good kids,
buy a good house,
buy a good car,
and take care of your mom and dad.
Then your life is set.
I did all that, but when it's not secure,
why isn't it secure?
"Those who work have already lost."
Go catch your own food before you say that.
To continue:
"Make others work for you, and you win."
"Make your money work for you, and you win even bigger."
So life's easier if you just work hard enough to look like you're working hard.
I'd agree with this.
Everyone around me looked unmotivated, so when I pushed myself a bit, I got promoted one step after another.
And everyone gets really skilled at just looking busy — if you let them see your hands are free, they pile more work on you, so even when you've got nothing to do, you find something to look busy with. Honestly idiotic when you think about it.
Corporate management seems to think engagement will rise and turnover will drop if they just improve treatment for young employees. But when you look at how badly people in their 40s and 50s are treated, you'd think today's young workers would realize they're headed for the same fate eventually.
Normally you'd think that way.
But most people have such tunnel vision that they might not realize it until they're in that position themselves.
If the masses were that smart, class struggle would've vanished from this planet a long time ago.
Then they'd go drinking, and the next day they'd just show up and work like normal again.
They did this Monday through Saturday.
And yet everyone had more energy back then than people do now.
Today's young people don't work, and on top of that, they've got no drive either.
Seriously? Sounds like that pasta place was a total sweatshop.
That's because the work was simple back then.
Nowadays you've got to juggle a bunch of things at once, which is exhausting.
Full workload, crammed in, with no overtime pay.
Up through around that era there were still plenty of family-run businesses. My family ran a liquor store, so whenever the local temple had a memorial service, the whole family would pitch in, chilling entire cases of beer in the walk-in cooler. It was rough work, but I miss it.
Counter: not interested in carrots.
Honestly, I don't even want a title or a ton of extra money…
So how do you classify a wealthy person who doesn't work, then?
It's the duty to provide [your children] an education.
Labor and taxes are things you do yourself, so when people shorten it to just "education," a rare few get it mixed up here.
You'd think everyone learned this back in elementary school, but it's strange how it still happens.
Pretty irresponsible, if you ask me.
He keeps saying "working and working," but there's no evidence of it.
He lies nonstop and slacks off constantly — where's the "work, work, work" in that?
but that's a rare thing.
It's not about turning your hobby into a job.
It's about turning your job into a hobby.
That's a story from back when whole families ran their own liquor store or whatever.
Companies that fired everyone up with "guts and spirit" pep talks from the morning,
or had employees scream the company motto, have disappeared.
Taxes were low back in the Showa era.
That's the whole "corporate warrior" thing — hiring straight out of the varsity sports clubs.
I honestly think it was the best era.
Everyone doing radio calisthenics together, with some employees yawning their way through reciting the company motto…
Makes you kind of long for it, doesn't it.
Background and Key Points of This Debate
The Yomiuri survey was a nationwide mail-in opinion poll, and the question it asked was about agreement or disagreement with the value judgment “is working hard a virtue” — it does not measure whether people are actually slacking off. Misreading this easily leads to the simplistic conclusion that “young people don’t work,” but the thread itself surfaced plenty of complaints about pay and working conditions, along with comments pointing to management’s responsibility, so this isn’t something a simple generational narrative can explain away. Underlying it is the gap between the values of the high-growth era, when long hours were taken for granted, and the lived experience of today’s working generations, whose burdens have only grown heavier while wages stay flat. The fact that “don’t see it as a virtue” peaked at 56% among 18-to-39-year-olds but still reached 40% even among those 60 and older suggests this shift in values is unfolding gradually across generations — these numbers are better read in light of changing working conditions and compensation than as a simple generational clash.
*This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (News Flash+) thread ““Working Hard Is a Virtue,” Say Only 51% — Lower the Younger You Go… Yomiuri Shimbun “Ways of Working” Opinion Poll.”
Leave a Reply