Other efforts to take advantage of online platforms to force social change have not produced widespread results in Japan. Yumi Ishikawa, a Japanese model, actress and temporary worker, led a viral social media campaign two years ago calling for an end to employers’ demands that women wear high heels. The Ministry of Labor recognized that it needed to “raise awareness” of the issue and some employers relaxed some dress codes, but many women still feel obliged to wear heels – and get out – to go to the office.
To some extent, demography dictates the hegemony of the ancients in Japan. More than a quarter of the population is 65 years old or older, the largest proportion in the world. Japanese people tend to live longer and in better health than many people elsewhere, and the media is full of examples of vibrant artisans who remain active until the seventh and eighth decades. But sometimes the older generation’s outdated values prevail.
And while age in many cases brings valuable experience, in Japan it is often the credential that surpasses all others.
“Seniority and age are still more important than skill,” said Jesper Koll, a senior consultant with WisdomTree, an investment firm that has lived in Japan for more than three decades. “Japan is the world champion in pushing for hierarchy, and position is not skill, but mainly just age.”
The seniority system endures in part because it provides a sense of security. Workers know the way forward and values are instilled long before they enter the labor market, with hierarchies applied even among children.
“When I was at school, I heard that if you hear your older sempai now, when you become a sempai, people will have to listen to you,” said Ryutaro Yoshioka, 27, using the word for older mentors. Likewise, in the workplace, Yoshioka said, employees who “stay with the company will end up going up.”