Japan’s Lost Generation Is Still Jobless and Living With Their Parents

Shut out of the employment market in their 20s, they continue to search for direction in middle age. The doors open only once. That’s how people often describe Japan’s hidebound hiring system, in which college students have their best shot at landing a coveted salaried position in the year approaching graduation. Those who successfully navigate the arduous corporate recruiting process will be rewarded with a secure place on the corporate ladder, along with regular raises and promotions. The rest are largely condemned to flit from one low-paying job to the next, with little avenue for advancement and zero job security. A decade after Japan’s bubble economy had collapsed, employers drastically scaled back new hires to protect older workers. The labor market had entered an “ice age,” according to media reports. Those part of Japan’s so-called lost generation were faced with limited job prospects, many ended up single and childless. Japan’s 2015 census revealed the