One in Three Japanese No Longer Seeking Lifetime Employment

A survey conducted by Japan Management Association looked at the career paths planned by new employees in Japan. When asked if they wished to “work at one company through to retirement” or, if given the chance, “change jobs or work independently,” 30.1% chose the latter. It used to be that lifetime employment was the norm, but that thinking is changing. While 20.6% of high school graduates wanted to change jobs, this rose to 34.0% for university graduates (including those who had graduated from technical and junior colleges).

The survey was conducted online in early April and targeted attendees of JMA’s publicly held educational seminars for new employees. It received 675 valid responses.

Respondents were presented with different possible workplace situations and asked what they thought they would do in each case. The results showed that the top game changer for new employees’ career paths was when they did not see that the company had a future, with 78.4% saying they would consider changing jobs at that point. This was followed by 72.4% who said they would leave if the company culture did not match their values. Further down in the ranking, in the range of 55%-60%, were those who said they would change companies if they saw no prospect of a wage increase or promotion.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)