[News Terms] 'Oyakaku': Getting Parental Permission to Join a Company

Current State of Japan's Recruitment Market Shaped by Low Birthrate and Aging Population
"Recruitment Market Shifts in Favor of Job Seekers"

'Oyakaku (親確)' refers to the practice where companies hiring new employees seek permission from the parents of successful candidates in recruitment exams before the candidates officially join the company. The term combines 'Oya (親)', meaning 'parent', and 'Kaku (確)', meaning 'confirmation'.

Recently in Japan, there has been an increase in new hires canceling their employment due to parental opposition. As a result, companies have adopted strategies to block parental objections from the recruitment stage itself, aiming to secure new talent. This coined term reflects the current state of Japan's recruitment market, where the positions of job seekers and employers have reversed amid prolonged labor shortages caused by low birthrates and an aging population.

New employees and their parents attending the company orientation for parents called 'Oyaori' held last December by an IT company in Osaka, Japan.
[Photo by NHK]

Oyakaku is implemented in various ways. It is standard to send pamphlets containing company information to the parents of prospective employees (successful candidates). Companies also make phone calls asking, "We intend to hire your child; would you permit this?" Many companies require parents to sign an employment pledge agreeing to their child's employment. The pledge includes a guardian's signature section and states that "after submission, the candidate cannot refuse employment without just cause."

Some companies create separate pages on their websites specifically for parents or invite parents to meals organized for prospective employees. Additionally, some companies have introduced 'Oyaori', a corporate orientation session for parents.

On the 28th, NHK reported, citing the job information site Mynavi, that 52.4% of parents of prospective employees were contacted by companies last month, a significant increase from 17.7% six years ago.

Among prospective employees who secured jobs this year, 61.9% said they consulted with their parents when choosing a company. Reflecting this trend, companies persuade parents to ensure that the prospective employees do not change their minds.

Yosuke Hasegawa, a researcher at Mynavi, said, "As the university student population declines, the recruitment market has shifted in favor of employers. Since the relationship between parents and children has become closer, parental approval leads to the candidate's motivation to join, so this trend is expected to continue."

However, concerns have been raised about the spread of this trend. Michiko Nishino, a professor of family sociology at Toyo University, said, "There are parents worried that 'black companies' might exploit parental consent. When new employees point out company faults, the company might dismiss them by saying, 'We explained this to the parents beforehand,' so caution is necessary."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.