Generation Z's 'Albanoshow'... Even Japanese Bosses Say "It's Tough"

Japanese Self-Employed Also Struggle with Albano Show
Increase in No-Shows Due to Smartphone and Platform Activation Supporting Multiple Jobs
No-Show Experience Among Part-Timers Rises from 5% to 7%
In Korea, 8 out of 10 Bosses Have Experienced No-Shows

As it has become easy to apply for part-time jobs (shortened as "alba") using smartphones, the number of cases where applicants fail to show up for interviews without any contact is increasing in Japan as well.

On the 29th, Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported that as applying for part-time jobs has become easier through smartphones and apps, the "no-show" phenomenon (disappearance of contact or sudden cancellation after contact) among Generation Z is spreading. The owner of a ramen specialty shop posted a job listing on a major recruitment site in January this year to hire one part-time worker but received no inquiries. In March, he scheduled interviews with three candidates but did not meet any of them. The owner said, "I had heard about no-show cases from other business owners but thought it was someone else's problem," adding, "I spent nearly 1 million yen over three months posting on the recruitment site, but since there were no applicants, I have been running the business alone while shortening operating hours."

Recruit, which operates the Japanese job search site "Townwork," analyzed that "the widespread use of the internet has made it easier to find part-time jobs, allowing one job seeker to apply to multiple places, which is the cause." According to a survey of 3,000 part-time job seekers conducted by Recruit, 25% of student job seekers applied to two or more places at once. The main reasons for no-shows were "I wanted to decide quickly and chose the first company I interviewed with" or "I found a better job." A Recruit representative said, "The era of hiring by phone is already over."

According to a survey of 3,000 people conducted by Mynavi, the operator of another recruitment platform "Mynavi Byte," the percentage of no-show experience (for part-time jobs) rose from 5.1% in 2021 to 5.9% in 2022 and 7.1% in 2023. Mynavi stated, "People who no-show without contacting are generally a minority, and most young people still have common sense as before." They also mentioned that the recent increase in proxy services where parents or agencies apply for resignation after a job decision is a social change.

As these problems arise, some companies are introducing digital transformation (DX) services that automatically handle applications and set interview dates on behalf of each company's recruitment staff. A restaurant in Tokyo that introduced this service two years ago said, "We created items such as whether the applicant can work at least three times a week in advance, so only those who meet these conditions apply and attend interviews, which has improved interview efficiency," adding, "No-shows still occur but have decreased significantly compared to the past."

Meanwhile, in Korea, no-shows have become commonplace, with about 8 out of 10 business owners experiencing them. According to a survey conducted last month by Alba Heaven targeting 256 self-employed business owners, 77.3% of the owners had experienced no-shows during the hiring or working process of part-time workers. The reasons for no-shows were ranked as follows: ▲part-time job seekers who do not show up for interview appointments (79.3%), ▲part-time workers who do not show up on their first day after final acceptance (63.6%), and ▲existing part-time workers who suddenly take unauthorized absences (52.0%).

When 222 owners currently employing part-time workers were asked about their biggest difficulties in managing part-time staff, "sudden no-shows or resignations of part-time workers" was the most common response at 82.0%. Other difficulties included ▲adjusting part-time workers' schedules (28.4%), ▲part-time workers' negligence during work (25.7%), and ▲calculating and paying wages such as night shift allowances and severance pay (9.0%).