Young Japanese singles list organizations they’d most like a potential date to work for

Compared to social norms in the West, Japanese courtship can often seem rather indirect. However, at times Japan can be very forthright in searching for companionship, particularly with the practice of "gokon," matchmaking parties in which an equal number of unattached men and women share a meal and see if there’s any potential for romantic connections.

Recently, Japanese credit management company Risk Monster conducted a poll of 800 single Japanese men and women between the ages of 20 and 39, asking them which places of employment they’d like to participate in a "gokon" with workers from. We’re not sure exactly why a credit management company went to the trouble of performing this research, but let’s dive into the top 10 responses anyway.

9 (tie). Mitsubishi Tokyo UFJ Bank ( selected by 3.1 percent of respondents) 9 (tie). Amazon (3.1 percent)

Things start off with an interesting contrast, with one of the most traditional business sectors, banking, splitting the number-nine spot with online retailing, one of the newest.

1. Japan Airlines (4 percent)

Japan has always held companies with a major overseas presence in high regard, and it’s hard to get much more multinational in operations than an airline that flies international routes. Japanese men’s fondness for cabin attendant uniforms probably also secured a few votes for Japan Airlines.

6 (tie). Google (4.1 percent) 6 (tie). Apple (4.1 percent)

1. Toyota (4.8 percent)

Toyota may not have the flashiest or most exciting lineup of cars, but it’s remained an immensely successful company during a period in which many other Japanese automakers have had to be saved by outside investment.

3 (tie). Local civil servant (5.1 percent) 3 (tie). All Nippon Airways (5.1 percent)

1. Nintendo (5.9 percent)

While Nintendo may not be every gamer’s company of choice, the Kyoto-based company enjoys a sterling reputation, among the general public, as an innovative, creative, and, once again, internationally successful business entity.

1. National civil servant (7.8 percent)

In some countries, certain people may look down on government employment as the refuge of those who couldn’t hack it in the business world. That’s definitely not the case in Japan, though.

Yes, government work doesn’t have the same top-end earning potential as the highest-flying private sector jobs, but the pay for most posts is generally considered to be at least competitive. What’s more important, though, in the eyes of many Japanese people, is the unrivaled stability civil service jobs afford, as government cutbacks are few and far between in Japan.

As a result, government jobs in Japan often attract the country’s best and brightest, and that assumed combination of intelligence, energy, and financial security makes civil servants extremely eligible bachelors and bachelorettes. That’s especially true for the bachelors, as 17.8 percent of the women polled gave either local or national civil servant as their response.

Source: Risk Monster

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