Former crime syndicate members are struggling to find jobs after putting the yakuza world behind them. In the decade ending in 2020, some 5,900 people were able to leave crime syndicates with the help of police and others, but only 3.5% of them went on to find work.
In early 2018, a member of a yakuza gang rushed into the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters and asked for help leaving a crime syndicate. In the three or so years the 27-year-old had spent in the gang, he served as senior officials' drivers and in other positions, but mounting fees he had to pay the gang were making him pessimistic about the future. But he had no experience seeking work outside the yakuza world. "I didn't know how to search for a job," he told the Mainichi Shimbun.
Police first instructed him to not respond to any of the crime syndicate's attempts to make him stay in the gang. He was advised to turn off his phone right away if a gang leader called him to try to stop him leaving. He was also referred to the Tokyo Center for Removal of Criminal Organizations, which offers advice on finding work to former yakuza.
At the center, the man was shown multiple job options, among which he was ultimately accepted as a regular worker at a firm doing maintenance on hotel equipment, among other services. After becoming an employee there, his superior taught him how to use a computer and create documents.
The company's human resources officer spoke highly of him: "I got the impression he was a decent person with the strong will and ability to take action and quit the crime syndicate. He has a very serious attitude to work, too."
About a year after being employed at the company, he was promoted to section chief. "I've been able to come this far because even the people who knew I was a former yakuza saw me without prejudice as a human being. Now, I'm thinking about how I can be of service to the company."
The center that helped the man find his job introduces former yakuza to cooperating companies that are understanding of the plight former yakuza are in. They often find jobs through the center, but only about 10 people actually consult it per year. "Former members of crime syndicates, who have attached great value to saving face, may be resistant to the idea of consulting a public body for assistance," a center staff member said.
A Tokyo resident in his 40s who left a crime syndicate in 2013 pointed to the example of bank accounts to stress the difficulty of life after leaving a gang.
The banking industry has a rule prohibiting former yakuza from opening bank accounts until five years after they leave a gang. This forces former gang members to explain to employers why they cannot open bank accounts, and makes job hunting harder.
The man happened to have an acquaintance running a company with no ties to crime syndicates, and as chance would have it, he was able to get work there. "It was possible for me to become a company employee because of that person's understanding, but there are a lot of people who, even though they might find a job, don't really fit in at their job because of their tattoos or missing fingertips. Countless people who are unable to find work and end up without money, go on to rely on buddies from the past and start buying and selling methamphetamines and other stimulants. They go back to their old gangs."
Ultimately, job hunting's biggest challenge is being able to find job openings where employers are understanding of candidates' circ*mstances. As long as former yakuza have jobs, it can prevent them going back to their gangs or committing crimes. According to the National Police Agency, around 5,900 people were able to leave crime syndicates with support from police and others in the decade ending in 2020, but only 210 people found work in the same period.
In response to the situation, police departments and other bodies across the country are putting their weight behind job assistance for former crime syndicate members.
The f*ckuoka Prefectural Police, which is on a mission to eliminate the Kudo-kai crime syndicate headquartered in the f*ckuoka Prefecture city of Kitakyushu in southwestern Japan, began signing agreements with police departments nationwide in 2016 to offer job options outside the prefecture, where gang members are less likely to know other gang-related people. As of January 2021, the agreement has spread to 35 prefectural police departments.
Furthermore, the f*ckuoka Prefectural Police has adopted a program in which it provides a cash handout of a maximum of 720,000-yen (approx. $6,207) to companies taking in a former crime syndicate member as an employee. A similar program has been implemented by the prefectural police of Hyogo, where the Yamaguchi-gumi and Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicates have headquarters. The Tokyo Center for Removal of Criminal Organizations also provides a maximum of 300,000 yen (approx. $2,586), and is considering raising the amount.
However, the fruits of their efforts are still limited. "Under the current circ*mstances, there is no system to follow up on former yakuza after they find work, so companies shoulder high risks by taking in former gang members," said attorney Motoo Kakizoe, an expert on issues surrounding crime syndicates. "It is imperative to cultivate specialized human resources who will support gang members to leave gangs and find employment."
(Japanese original by Kotaro Adachi, Tokyo City News Department)
FAQs
The aging of yakuza members and their financial difficulties have also hobbled the syndicate, experts say. The number of arrested yakuza members in 2023 declined to 9,610, compared to 22,495 in 2014, according to the police. Yakuza crackdowns have driven many members to quit and sent others underground.
Why don't the police get rid of the Yakuza? ›
Because the Yakuza are tightly woven within Japanese society. They are important to cultural events in Tokyo especially and actually seem to keep most petty crime to a minimum. They don't view themselves as criminals but more like samurai who help keep the peace.
What caused the decline of the Yakuza? ›
Societal changes, gang infighting, and reduced tolerance has eroded the power of Japan's famous crime syndicates. The once-feared Japanese mob is on the verge of extinction. Targeted by new laws, rapidly aging, and unable to find fresh blood, the yakuza have dropped from a height of 180,000 members to less than 30,000.
Why did the Yakuza fall? ›
In 1963, the number of yakuza members and quasi-members reached a peak of 184,100. However, this number has drastically dropped, a decline attributed to changing market opportunities and several legal and social developments in Japan that discourage the growth of yakuza membership.
How are yakuza treated in Japan? ›
In Italy, there is the crime of association, where just being a member of the mafia is a crime. In Japan, the yakuza have offices in the streets and are allowed to exist, but other laws effectively restrict their human rights.
What is Japan doing to stop the Yakuza? ›
Once the ordinances of Okinawa and Tokyo went into effect on October 10, 2011, all of Japan's prefectures have had the ordinance. The ordinances pursue cutting any implicit relationships between citizens and the yakuza. Some of the prohibitions contain punishment against citizens.
Is it illegal to be a yakuza? ›
These activities make the relationship between yakuza and police in Japan a complicated one; yakuza membership itself is not illegal, and yakuza-owned businesses and gang headquarters are often clearly marked. Gang whereabouts and activities are often known to Japanese police without the latter's taking any action.
What is the Yakuza five year rule? ›
The yakuza exclusion ordinances set by local governments and such have a “five-year antisocial force” rule, which restricts people who were gang members for five years after they quit. But even after five years pass, people often can't open bank accounts or buy cars.
Are the Yakuza still powerful in Japan? ›
Anti-Chinese discrimination (also directed at Koreans) is common and goes back before the second world war. But it should not mask the reality that, for the foreseeable future at least, the yakuza still runs Japan's criminal underworld.
Are there female Yakuza? ›
These are signs of affiliation to the yakuza – Japan's notorious criminal syndicates. The yakuza is dominated by men and leaves only informal roles to women. Typically a woman involved with the yakuza might be an anesan, a boss' wife who takes care of young affiliates and mediates between them and her husband.
Kenichi Shinoda (篠田 建市, Shinoda Ken'ichi, born January 25, 1942), also known as Shinobu Tsukasa (司 忍, Tsukasa Shinobu), is a Japanese yakuza, the sixth and current kumicho (supreme kingpin, or chairman) of the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's largest yakuza organization.
Are the Yakuza violent? ›
In the 21st century, yakuza members deal mainly in extortion, protection rackets, sex trafficking, gambling, real estate, and construction. Violent yakuza crimes usually involve rivalries between families, but sometimes target civilians.
Can you meet yakuza in Tokyo? ›
If you want to meet them, go to Kabukicho, dressed in a flashy suit with no tie, showing the upper part of your chest, being sharp eyed, being provocative, saying stupid things to thug-looking people, loitering for an hour, they may come to you. What's it like to be in the same room with a Yakuza?
Who is the most powerful yakuza family? ›
Four largest syndicates
The Yamaguchi-gumi is the largest yakuza family, with about 8,200 members. The Sumiyoshi-kai is the second-largest yakuza family, with 4,200 members. Sumiyoshi-kai is a confederation of smaller yakuza groups. Its current head (会長 oyabun) is Isao Seki.
Are Japanese yakuza still around? ›
Although yakuza membership has declined following an anti-gang law aimed specifically at yakuza and passed by the Japanese government in 1992, there are thought to be about 25,900 active yakuza members in Japan today. The Yamaguchi-gumi is the largest yakuza family, with about 8,200 members.
Why isn't it called yakuza anymore? ›
They wanted to be like the original Japanese title of the series, Ryu Ga Gotoku which translates to Like A Dragon. I am not a fan of this change because now there are long titles instead of numbers. - Like A Dragon Gaiden which is RGG7 Gaiden in Japan so its Yakuza 7 but Kiryu's little story.
Who is the current yakuza boss? ›
Kenichi Shinoda (篠田 建市, Shinoda Ken'ichi, born January 25, 1942), also known as Shinobu Tsukasa (司 忍, Tsukasa Shinobu), is a Japanese yakuza, the sixth and current kumicho (supreme kingpin, or chairman) of the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's largest yakuza organization.
What replaced the Yakuza? ›
Sega has formally dropped the Yakuza brand name and replaced it with Like a Dragon. To "more closely align with the Japanese name." Following news that Like a Dragon: Ishin is coming to the West, Sega has confirmed that it is officially dropping the Yakuza name from its fan-favourite RPG series.
