Working overtime: ‘Silver Jinzai’ centers keep Japan’s seniors employed
About once a week, 85-year-old Makiko Kimura opens up shop at Komamon, a snack and candy store in the residential neighborhood of Komae, Tokyo. On Kimura’s off days, the store is manned by fellow members of the town’s Silver Jinzai center — one of many community-based agencies where retirees and older residents can stay active. The word “jinzai” translates to “personnel” in English.
“At the candy shop, I have so much fun talking to the children,” Kimura says. “I don’t have kids of my own, so getting to interact with them is a great joy.”
The Komae Silver Jinzai Center is just one of more than 1,300 such branches across Japan. Open to anyone age 60 or older looking for part-time work, these community hubs have more than 670,000 members.
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