Japan Rearing a Nation of Civil Servants
- Categories: Japan, News
- Date: Nov 23, 2009 17:11 JST
- Tags: Bureaucracy, Business, Feminism, Rankings, Sports, Statistics, Technology
A recent survey of what professions Japanese parents would like to see their children undertake seems to suggest that the nation’s parents overwhelmingly have it in mind to raise a generation of civil servants…
The ranking (see also the source graph below) of responses given by parents to the question “what profession would you like to see your child working in?”:
1. Civil servant
2. Engineer/technician
3. Cook
4. Doctor/dentist
5. Scientist/researcher
6. Nurse
7. Teacher
8. Baseballer
9. Architect
10. Manager/businessman
11. Lawyer
12. Footballer
13. Entertainer
14. “Elite salaryman”
15. Family business/self-employed
With 24%, civil servant overwhelmingly dominated the rankings at twice the nearest competing occupation, that of engineer, a result which does not say much about the future economic dynamism of the nation, at least if parents get their way.
Decades of economic malaise seem to have consolidated parental aspirations into jobs perceived as being either untouchable or future-proof, or simply very optimistic as with all the celebrity cooks and athletes apparently being trained.
For those interested in more detail, the below graph has it. Each group of three graphs (ordered as above) is divided into a total figure (blue), and a figure for boys (green) and another for girls (red).
Some very strong differences in gender expectations are in evidence, though apparently not where the desirability of cushy unsackable civil service posts are concerned:
These results rather suggest a nightmare scenario of future Japan being comprised of old people doing nothing, civil servants administering their pensions, and engineers working to pay the pensions and wages of the other two (along with cooks attempting to keep them all fed).
Fortunately, children are not exclusively their parent’s creatures…
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I'm sad that hikikomori isn't on there. ;_;
i had to lol
That was bad and you should feel bad.
the guy's just trying to be funny. but the people surveyed were parents, not the children. what parent would want a middle-aged shut-in leeching their money forever?
The type of parents that get fulfillment out of having someone to take care of and dolt over?
Somehow, I don't think you have a child to actually take care of and feed ( thankfully neither do I actually).
the matrix?
All your parents are Agent Smith.
Hello Mr. Anderson
Is it wrong that I laughed (as well)?
Don't worry kids, let the diversity do it's trick.
Anywhere is the same, a few winners and a whole bunch of losers.
dude, being a hikki ain't cool at ALL
Well I may say that the same kind of thinking applies here at my country as well.
I have a feeling it's like that in most modern European countries... The geriatrocracy scenario is quite a possible outcome. Stirling's "Holy fire" anyone?
It applies in mine too.
Seriously, lawyer doctor politician entertainer sportsman those are all common dream professions.
I am more impressed by the addition of engineer and researcher that high, those are usually weird professions.
But hey, Gohan ended up as researcher right?
Same situation here where I live. However, not ALL would get that kind of job, since civil servants comprise of the top of the population in academics. Many top-brass officers in the military usually cross over to the civil service as well.
In the USA the average government job pays a little more then twice, with all benefits included, then the average private sector job.
Also the government is the fastest growing employment sector.
Between a bloated beaurocracy and tens of millions living off the government to some degree there won't be enough honest working people left to pay the taxes. Opps.. guess that's already happened since the federal government will need to borrow over a trillion dollars this year.
I think it's because the parental generation was raised by people who believed that it's justifiable to invade other countries if your country ordered you to do it. Because that's the order of the universe. You<government, government = group. And it would've worked too, since Japan didn't rely on heavily talented individuals, but groups of individuals filtered through tests and other stuff so you only have the elite at the top, telling other people what to do for as long as it's possible until Gekikujou.
I dunno. It's pretty entrenched deep in Japanese culture, so the mentality goes like: "Why not just be a civil servant?" because in a way, as long as you're Japanese, anything you do represents Japan, ergo its government.
or something.
wtf is 1337 Salaryman?
maybe someone who just goes to office and sits in his chair while making others do his work yet still earn big bucks?
It is an upgrade you can research at the Castle in the Imperial Age.
(AoE II reference, for the oblivious)
Screw two, AoE I for the win.
Screw you,AoM for the win.
An Elite Salary man is like a normal salary man, only he has martial arts skills and carries weapons.
He's regularly sent out to beat down the competition and clear out anyone hurting company profits. In addition to that, every year there is a secret Elite Salary man tournament that takes place in an underground arena. The winner of this tournament gains fame and fortune for himself and his company.
I'm making it up of coarse, but it would be interesting if it were true. I wouldn't be surprised if there were a manga about that already.
With so many civil servants, architects and engineers, Japan will have a NICE(Borat voice) Infrastructure.
You sir win an internet for that post.
What? No giant robot pilot? I'm shocked! Or are people not allowed to do that once they're past 20?
omfg how fail can you be? god
your mums a horde aswell
They say serving in the military isn't popular in Japan. And that's where mecha pilots will be most likely. At least for the next generation.
Well, unless the government doesn't do something to raise popularity of the military, it naturally tends to be low.
“Elite salaryman” sounds like "designer toilet cushion".
Parents who want their sons to become civil servants and engineers shouldn't be surprised when their sons can't find a wife. According to the previous poll, Top 10 Professions Japanese Women Most Want to Date, civil servant ranks #9. Engineers don't even make the list.
At least he cannot find a wife that values his pocket more than he himself. Also he would find a wife with a 'older' brain as compared to something 'new'.
Who wants a man who in recession will have a 50% chance of having his rice bowl broken. This recession is known to occur once every 10 years. Plus his risk factor of getting retrenched is higher as he ages?
Since it's about "What profession would you like to see your *child* working in?", I guess there will be single men AND single women given that, according to the last otaku-driven poll, men are not really attracted by Civil servants and Engineers. And "Cook" will maybe look like a prerequisite for men.
Yeah, Japanese kids pretty much have no imagination or hope for the future. You ask girls in school what they dream of becoming, they say "housewife"... boys anywhere else would say "fireman" or "astronaut", but in Japan they'll say "salaryman"... it's incredibly depressing.
THIS IS MADNESS!
No, this is an overplayed joke way past its expiry date.
Yea but I think it's better than over 9000 in essense. Way better imo, dunno about for the others
no your mums a horde
so they wouldn't be proud of me if i worked as a sex slave i~i...
I would be :)
How is it more parents would rather have their daughters be nurses than actual doctors?
http://michiedo.blogspot.com/2008/12/im-glad-im-boy-im-glad-im-girl.html
Boys are doctors. Girls are nurses.
How have I never heard of this book before?! Must put it in the Anon Book Club.
This book deserves The Nobel Prize!!:D Must read for all children so someday there will be no feminazis!;)
Becoming a doctor costs a whole lot more time and money than becoming a nurse. Also more difficult.
14. “Elite salaryman”
Sounds... elite
I miss read #9 as Artefact
where is the source?
Manga Artist, Animator, Animation Director, Creative Director, Editor...
No more Anime/Manga in the long run.
What kind of parents hope their son will become a nurse?
They gotta be kidding, this survey has lost all credibility.
I noticed that too. That's hilarious. XD
and as always, it's mostly sons expected to work
Sauce on the girl? She's cute!
She's cute indeed! Seconded!
The civil service in Japan is pretty cushy if you can get in. Parents are probably thinking that a child on that kind of pay will look after them in their old age.
Also I can't believe my profession beats a doctor, sweet!
Elite Salaryman appears!
Fight
Magic
Item
Flee <----
Cunt punt
Meh, my parents never really cared what job I'm in. I'm a game designer (for schools only) and they didnt really even talk about it much because every month I give them some money.. lol
I recall reading that Japan's national debt currently stand at 105% of their GDP and servicing that debt is costing 5% of the GDP anally. At some point the Japanese government is going to have to address that colossal debt and that will involve massive cut backs in public sector spending. For that reason civil servant doesn't look like the stable career it once was.
I have to say that I'll enjoy greatly seeing these so call civil servants being forced into the private sector where they'll have to do some productive work.
They have to pay their debt anally?
Could the US use a similar model and sell unproductive high school druggy girls to forgeign countries to pay off our GDP anally?
reaching 200% currently. Sad times
You're right. What I read must have been the gross figure:
http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/economics/history-of-national-debt-in-japan/
And I thought western politicians were incompetent.
Western Polichickens are incompetent. They're just more obvious to point out, and snicker at.
Japan repays it's debt anally?
...Well it IS Japan after all...
Maybe we should start selling the brain dead high school druggies off to rich foreigners like the Saudi King to finance OUR national debt.
>costing 5% of the GDP anally
Annually and ANAL-ly. ;P
Why ain't mecha pilot on the list?
I think the results are more or less typical of Asian countries, though civil servants won't always be top like in Japan, it'll still be among the top 10.
Asian parents pretty much expect their kids to "study hard, get a stable job that pays well (adverturism not encouraged), and feed us well when we retire".
Mangaka is not in there?!
Mangaka and related jobs are probably on the "Do not want" list (or the "I'll disown you if you take that job" list).
... make up your mind, dad! What the hell do you want me to be!?
I want you to be a well-paid salary-drone at a soul-crushing irreplaceable job, son. You'll be better off that way than me doing two 8 hour shifts at the Konbini.
"a soul-crushing irreplaceable job."
So...a Mangaka then?
Actually coming from an Asian background this isn't very suprising. Civil servents are seen as one of the most stable and secure jobs available. It's not the highest paying but certainly most stable. Although not impossible, but when was the last time you heard a bunch of civil servants made redundant?
Because they are already redundant. Hell you could remove the entire legislature where I'm from and things would probably IMPROVE.
>when was the last time you heard a bunch of civil servants made redundant?
They had to cut the salary of civil servants in Hong Kong at one point because of bad economy.
Doctors, lawyers and engineers are the 3 most popular careers back in the olds days.
COOK!
Cooks over doctors? I though Japan was all about doing high-stress businessman/engineering/science jobs, which is why their education system is so freaking hardcore...
Yah looking at this they probably can really tone it down a lot and use that money to take care of their elderly.
No need to learn high level calculus or organic chemistry if all you going to do is push paper.
You can almost train a gorilla to perform a bureaucrat's job.
Only difference the gorilla will usually be much more agreeable to deal with and cheaper to bride.
And Gorillas are less likely to have a nervous breakdown and start flinging feces.
True and don't forget you can bribe them with bananas.
I dont even know what civil servants do. Here in Russia there is either no such profession, or it called somehow totally different, and ppl working in it are very few. Even the wiki page doesnt clearly say (I looked into at least few paragraphs) what the fuck are civil servants actually do? Are they that useless?
They are the people that make you wait in a queue for hours to get a seal on your document. And probably require a bribe to actually put said seal as well.
Bureaucrats, чиновники, that kind of people.
Ah well, I class #5.
Please don't end up like America..
>w<
Madness is all I can say a good Lawyer or Doctor makes 10x more then a civil servant.
Also who wouldn't want their kid to be a scientist It's only the coolest job ever.
Hello can you say Large Hadron Collider anyone?
No wonder the suicide rate is so high in Japan if my parents pushed me to be a paper pusher instead of going in to engineering I probably would have killed my self too.
That or go postal.
I can see why though.
The public service is easy to get into, stable and the pay is good enough that you can live on it in relative comfort.
It's the same thing that's happening in Australia if you can get into the public service build up experience and become a contractor you can make a very good living.
This is speaking strictly for the IT industry though.
Except in our case the government want more people doing trades...
civil servant...LOL, hikikomory or otaku must be the first!!!
Well, Japan is fucked.
Im glad Im an engineer. Now I can afford eating cup noodles.