Japanese retirees who want to continue working

Tokyo’s crimson maple leaves lie delicately on a bed of vibrant yellow ginkgo leaves. But notice who is raking those leaves. Usually, it’s the elderly people who bend down to clear the sidewalks. The gardeners are likely to be employees of the local Silver Jinzai centre, a movement that brings retirees back into the workforce.

Yoshida, 77, has spent his entire career as an office clerk at a large multinational company. Now he works at a school in Kita-ku, northern Tokyo. Sometimes he works six-hour shifts as a security guard. Other times, he coordinates school buses.

Yoshida is a member of the local silver, gold and wealth center. He worked three shifts a week and chose his job from many other options. Look closely around Tokyo and you’ll see members of the Silver Kinzai community everywhere: pruning bushes, collecting trash, or on duty outside schools and daycares. Their jobs are diverse, but they all have one thing in common: helping the community.

gold in center

The Silver Jinzai Center was founded in 1975 as a membership organization for seniors who wish to continue working in the community. These centers contract with local public and private sector employers and provide training courses for the older workforce. Today, these centers have more than 700,000 members.

The program’s popularity isn’t surprising. one latest A government survey found that 90% of people aged 60 and over wanted to work for at least another ten years, while 20.6% said they wanted to keep some form of employment “forever”.

Inspiring elders

Yoshida pulled up a chair for me as I headed to the bus driver’s lounge. “I’m happy here because the teachers and students are very polite and friendly,” he told me. “It keeps me healthy and it’s a way for me to do something for the community.”

The money was extra motivation, but not his motivation.

“I’m very happy with this role,” he said. “I am relieved every day knowing that nothing happened to the children. My priority is to stop people from entering the school.”

Yoshida is not alone. His school also employs seven other seniors from Ginjinzhai Center in North Ward as bus drivers, cleaners and nannies. For Yoshida, the work brought structure and friendships to his life.

North District God in Center has 2,326 member The average age is just over 75. The center will not turn away anyone because of age, although applicants over 80 must be deemed medically fit to work by a clinician before they can be accepted by the center.

Most members expressed similar motivations to Yoshida. According to an internal survey by the Kita Ward Center, 52% of members work for health and social reasons, while only 28% are motivated by wages, which range from 1,350 yen to 1,500 yen per hour. .

center influence

Under traditional economic models, pensioners like Yoshida are viewed as inactive, unproductive people who only draw on valuable national resources as they age. Here’s the rough view from the IMF in 2020 Report Addressing Japan’s demographic challenge.

However, the financial contribution of North District Yinjin Finance members is substantial. In the last fiscal year, its employment contracts totaled 1.13 billion yen, and its members worked a total of 261,602 days.

As Japan’s demographic crisis worsens, Ginjin centers are likely to grow in popularity, providing more opportunities for seniors. So, the next time you see an old man bending over to rake, don’t worry. They are not being denied the long-promised full retirement;

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