Hey there. Orianna here from Fortune.

As corporate America and Europe drag workers back to five days in the office and squeeze for ever more efficiency, Japan is quietly paying thousands of older employees to show up, sit down, and do almost nothing at all.

Meet the madogiwazoku cohort—older, underperforming, or redundant employees who are assigned desks near the window with little to no work to do.

These “window workers” are mostly Gen X and boomer men in their late fifties and sixties, who were hired on the promise of lifetime employment shushin koyo and a seniority‑based pay system.

Instead of leading teams or closing deals, they spend their days answering the occasional email, shuffling a few documents, and sorting paperwork—kept on comfortable salaries but carefully steered away from any real responsibility.

One small study hints at just how widespread this quiet reassignment from core work to the window seat has become. In a survey of 300 workers ages 20 to 39 at large Japanese companies, consulting firm Shikigaku found that 49.2% said their employer has an “old guy who doesn’t work.”

And while the phenomenon isn’t anything new, it’s gaining interest online as Western CEOs double down on productivity and mandates.

By absorbing older, less adaptable employees instead of sacking them, companies maintain psychological safety; reduce workers’ fear of being abruptly displaced; and preserve decades of experience that can be tapped for mentoring and training.

In an era when workers are being cut in the name of AI efficiency, Japan’s “window tribe” might look unproductive—but it’s a quiet reassurance to everyone else in the building that a bad quarter or a skills gap won’t cost you your livelihood.

—Orianna Rosa Royle
Success Associate Editor, Fortune

Got a career tip or dilemma? Get in touch: orianna.royle@fortune.com. You can also find me on LinkedIn, TikTok, X, and Instagram.