TOKYO - As major corporations like Panasonic move to reduce headcounts, a quiet revolution is underway among Japan’s younger workers: the rise of quiet quitting.
Panasonic Holdings announced this month that it will reduce its workforce by around 10,000 employees in the coming fiscal year, citing the need to boost productivity. At a press conference, executives emphasized the importance of maintaining a lean staff, arguing that having a slight labor shortage encourages innovation and efficiency.
Employment journalist Miyako Umihara, who recently published a book on the subject, explained that quiet quitting—originally coined by U.S. career coach Brian Creely—is a mindset where employees consciously limit their work to core responsibilities. They decline overtime, avoid unnecessary social obligations, and prioritize using their paid leave.
A survey conducted in November last year by Mynavi of 3,000 regular employees in their 20s to 50s found that 46.5% of respondents said they were practicing quiet quitting. Umihara notes that this trend is not entirely new in Japan, observing that even in the 1980s and 1990s, 30% to 40% of workers expressed a desire to avoid promotions and excessive workplace demands. The key difference today is that traditional corporate conditioning no longer holds the same power, she said.
Looking back, Japan's work culture has evolved considerably. The 1980s were defined by corporate loyalty and slogans like "Can you fight for 24 hours a day?" suggesting a culture of relentless devotion. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the so-called "employment ice age" and rise of the working poor forced many to cling to corporate jobs out of necessity. By 2016, policies encouraging the participation of women and older adults marked a shift, and the pandemic further accelerated the normalization of remote work and work-life balance.
Umihara points out that traditional "corporate warrior" models depended on a gender-divided household where the husband could focus solely on work while the wife handled domestic responsibilities. But with the rise of dual-income households, the burden of childcare and housework now requires shared participation, prompting a fundamental mismatch with old labor expectations.
She interprets quiet quitting not as apathy but as a rational adaptation—a sign that Japanese employment structures are undergoing growing pains. With more women attaining similar educational and employment status as men, and both expected to maintain full-time careers, a more flexible, sustainable approach to work is essential.
There are both supporters and critics of quiet quitting. Some corporate recruiters acknowledge the need to accommodate diverse career goals. Others, particularly in real estate and healthcare, worry that disengaged attitudes may impact team morale or skill development. Still, Umihara emphasizes that in many parts of Europe, job roles are clearly defined from the start, with only a select few expected to climb the corporate ladder. Most professionals remain in specialized roles, working efficiently and without overtime—a model she sees as a close parallel to Japan’s quiet quitting trend.
However, she also cautions that Europe's rigid credential-based systems can limit personal choice. Japan, in contrast, allows workers to rise through dedication and then plateau by personal decision. Umihara supports a system where individuals choose how far to climb, noting that companies should neither mandate early departures nor prevent motivated workers from advancing.
As for benefits, quiet quitting allows men and women alike to maintain careers over the long term, and gives companies a chance to rethink outdated seniority-based pay structures. In Japan, seniority often leads to inflated salaries that outpace the value of actual job performance, resulting in practices like pushing out employees in their 50s or rotating them into non-essential roles. By moderating pay raises and keeping employees in operational roles longer, Umihara argues, firms can keep experienced workers productive into their 60s and 70s.
Ultimately, she sees quiet quitting as a pragmatic and sustainable work style for a society facing labor shortages, aging demographics, and shifting household dynamics.
Source: ABCTVnews
