Densha otaku infatuated with working on the railroad

[Anchorman]

Namiko Mochizuki, age 25, had loved trains from her childhood, and became infatuated with the idea of working for a railway company someday. But after graduating from a university with a degree in architectural engineering, she wound up employed by a home builder.

"I'd given up on the idea of finding a job with the railways --- I thought such positions were reserved exclusively for male high school grads," she tells Aera (5/28).

But circumstances have changed. Two summers ago, while perusing the web site of the Keio Teito Electric Railway Co., Mochizuki spotted a job-wanted ad. The company was engaged in mid-term hiring, and recalling her childhood dream, she applied. After passing two written examinations and an interview, she succeeded in securing a position --- quite a coup, as Keio only chooses about one out of every 30 applicants.

In October 2005 Mochizuki began work and presently toils at Keio's Shinjuku station, part of the world's busiest railway terminal. Her tasks include fielding inquiries from passengers regarding lost-and-found items, and general information about travel on the commuter line linking Shinjuku with Tokyo's western suburbs.

This month, Ms. Mochizuki will begin training as a train conductor. Her dream is to move up to the position of driver, and pilot one of Keio's "Tokkyu" high-speed limited expresses that ferry commuters between Hachioji and Shinjuku.

One of the reasons the railways are hiring, Aera explains, is that from this year large numbers of career employees who are part of the postwar baby boom generation will reach age 60 and begin retiring in large numbers. In addition, a higher percentage of young Japanese attend university these days, and companies that had heretofore depended on high school graduates to fill positions are realizing that particular section of the labor pool is drying up.

Interestingly, more university graduates find the notion of working for the railways appealing. The number of applicants, both from students and from workers in other sectors, has surged of late. In fact, about 60 to 70 percent of Keio's new hirees have been college grads, who, like Ms. Mochizuki, are eligible to work at all types of positions, including conductor and driver.

The East Japan Railway Co. of the JR group also initiated a mid-career hiring policy several years ago.

"University grads have become more aware of the availability of positions at railway companies," remarks Hiroshi Shiiyama, an assistant personnel manager at the Tobu Electric Railway Company. His company plans to commence hiring of university grads from 2008, and one of Shiiyama's tasks is the organizing of recruitment seminars.

The Odakyu and Tokyu railways have already been hiring college grads, from 1999 and 2001 respectively. The East Japan Railway Co, which adopted a similar policy in 2002, has even attracted grads from such prestigious private and public universities as Waseda, Keio (no relation to the railway), Hokkaido, Tohoku and others.

"Since the branch companies do their own hiring, the positions are basically local ones," explains Kenji Terasawa of JR East. "These jobs seem to be popular with students who don't like the idea of being transferred away their home towns."

Interestingly, the word has been circulating that railway companies are reluctant to hire dyed-in-the-wool rail enthusiasts. On a blog frequented by 'tetsudo otaku' (train geeks), one poster advises, "On the job exam, it's better if you miss a couple of the really tough questions on purpose."

But railway company spokespersons hotly deny that their hiring policies discriminate against the people in love with trains, and the aforementioned Miss Mochizuki's success would appear to verify this contention.

"As far as we're concerned, we base our hiring on an individuals character," was the gist of what they advised Aera's reporter. (By Masuo Kamiyama, People's Pick contributor).