Elderly people account for record 28.4% of Japanese population

This statistic combined with a declining birthdate spells gloom and disaster for the Japanese economy and the already failed archaic pension scam.

My Mrs has been paying into this scam for over twenty years. She has ‘invested’ (cough) over 6 million yen into this scam, but her entitlement is less than 20% at 1.3 million yen. This does not make sense to me. A retirement fund is a mutual fund that pays dividends. A pension fund is not a mandatory payment of money you will never see again. They should stop calling it a pension because it is not. It is an extremely high tax that disappears into a government coffer.

Like a runaway train headed towards the abyss, whose ultimate fate has been known for at least 20 years.

Odds on its going to be a record breaking statist for the next decade or more. If only the Government had taken action real action 25-30 years ago.

Shocking stats...

Pity the nurses dealing with larger number of patients with dementia and physical ailments....

The sad results of a self imposed 'one child policy'.

-Ageing society.

-Shrinking tax paying labor force hurting the economy.

-Few resources to pay for care of elderly.

-Lonely elderly with no one visiting them.

-Elder abuse because of pressure on the spouse, sole child to care for the aged.

Etc, etc. So sad.

I'm glad I've got my bunch of children. It's tough raising them but it's fun and hopefully they'll be there for us later in life.

28.5 ....28.6.....

For any enterprising person in Japan, this is the biggest business opportunity. If you can develop products and services for old people, the market for them in other countries is also going to grow. With Japan aging earlier than other countries, needs will emerge here faster than in other countries.

As for the government, this was obvious and the country should have created a sovereign wealth fund.

I'll have to work when I'm old and probably downsize our house, but that is the result of choices I have made. I'm 51 next month, and would be lying if I claimed I'd never knew about the need to save for old age.

@kohakuebisu - I'll have to work when I'm old and probably downsize our house, but that is the result of choices I have made. I'm 51 next month, and would be lying if I claimed I'd never knew about the need to save for old age.

I hope you have skills to enable you to work from home.

For any enterprising person in Japan, this is the biggest business opportunity. If you can develop products and services for old people, the market for them in other countries is also going to grow. With Japan aging earlier than other countries, needs will emerge here faster than in other countries.

Kohakuebisu,  problem is while some old folks have $$ a great many DO NOT, there isn't much disposable income for people to even afford a simple decent room somewhere in a care facility with a couple meals let alone for enterprising folks to capitalize on them......

When are they going to do away with the ridiculously stringent mandatory retirement age rules? Older people (not everyone over 65 should be automatically classified as "elderly") who can and wnat to should still work and contribute their taxes. Do me a favor and start with universities.

The ratio of seniors with jobs increased for the 15th consecutive year as the country faced a deepening labor shortage.

Fake news.

Seniors working is not out of choice but because most cannot live on their monthly pension alone and those that can have to continue working even at extremely low wages so that they can save for elderly care or when they are unable to work.

The job shortage is self created by the government. Raise the national hourly rate to 1500yen and the shortage will vanish. Companie are making record profits while salaries have stagnated and instead of encouraging companies to compete for labor by dishing out more pay, the government resorted to a band-aid solution of importing cheap foreign labour which profits only the companies rather than the economy in general.

There are people opting to use their employment benefit rather than work because the amount received if under 60 years old and reason for unemployment is of employer making is better than toiling long hours on low pay and taxes deducted from the meagre pay.

The economy will continue to be depressed if the issue of low wages and the temp work laws are not addressed.

I am 65 and I would challenge anyone here to surf and keep up with me.

26 years of paying into the system and getting ¥2.6 million out of it per year. Unfortunately, unlike the American system, you lose half of your Kosei/kyosai nankin when you get divorced. They penalize you when you get divorced, which is sad for those with a low pension and no other cash , annuities, or other forms of getting funds. So, the govt. ends up paying in the long run anyway.

I work hard enough to ensure my futureold days.

Thinking that go would take care of you is a communist idea that we know where it leads : not where you thought and what was agreed.

My wife stopped paying the pension fund for good reasons.

A lot of numbers, stats, and "facts" being thrown around here.

Zero solutions, ideas, or common sense to deal with the issues.

Welcome to Japan.

For clarification, the business opportunities for Japan being the first rich country to age in big numbers will mostly fall to big business. My point is that it's huge growth area in the world economy. More and more old people and fewer and busier adult children to look after them, as per the historical model in rich countries. Rich countries are all about the nuclear family and individuals now.

My other point is that it is unwise to simply rely on the state. If you do, you will get what you are given.

Do the hustle

My Mrs has been paying into this scam for over twenty years. She has ‘invested’ (cough) over 6 million yen into this scam, but her entitlement is less than 20% at 1.3 million yen.

Is the 1.3million yen the amount she will receive per annum or a one time lump payment if she opts out of the pension if she is a foreigner?

JCosplay,

As I keep harping about here on jt YOU need to learn what a population pyramid is and LOOK at Japans more recent stats, it AINT GOOD.

The number of newborns has been dropping for a long time, so even if the birthrate were to somehow increase in the future the population WILL continue to decrease over time.

And the big question is can the economy etc SURVIVE as the old folks shift through their "golden" years, it is NOT looking very good, in fact one only has to see the daily news to know its not good for a great number of the elderly NOW in Japan!

I think, they are thinking in the future.

a few decades of dying, then the depopulated youth will create a new Japan

I dont really know what Japans future will be. I know it could be a model for the world,

but too many interest and protectionism. What makes it all go around, might make it all fail.

many of the towns in the inaka are pretty depressing

@GanbereJapan thank you for that last comment. Because I was getting pretty annoyed at the doom and gloom comments myself. Because it’s like for those people, what do you want to see happen? Do you want to see people being forced back in the work even if they’re too old to do it? Or do you want to see people forced to have kids?

Stuff like that is what we see in communist, fascist, and theocratic dictatorships. And I obviously don’t need to ask them if that’s what they want Japan to become. Because of course not, nobody in their right mind would want there’s society to turn into something like that.

And besides, the government IS taking action on this, just not as fast as a lot of people would like. In terms of free daycare, encouraging women to remain at the workplace after becoming pregnant or childbirth, etc. as well as trying to discourage the stigma behind those things. I’m not saying that they’re perfect in dealing with this, what I am saying is that there IS action being taken on this, so don’t assume otherwise.

I dont share the "doom and gloom" of some posters to this story. The aging population of Japan, as well as the declining population, is proof that Japan can manage to run their society smoothly, safely and orderly, even if 28% of citizens are old.

They may be old, but elderly Japanese people can do anything!

Japan has the best way and the best health care that is why we have the most old people. It is symbol of the quality of Japanese life.