(AFP, Tokyo) A nursing home in Nagoya, facing a shortage of caregivers, has come up with a novel idea: recruiting bodybuilders as caregivers, offering benefits including paid workout time and a protein supplement allowance.
Bodybuilder Takuya Usui effortlessly lifted 65-year-old Madoka Yamaguchi, who was unable to walk and had weak arms, placed her in a wheelchair, fed her, brushed her teeth, and administered eye drops.
Usui, a former fitness instructor, said, "I always thought this industry was unattractive, but then I learned that this job would allow me to use my muscles, so I thought I'd give it a try."
Yamaguchi said with satisfaction, "He's very strong; I don't have to worry about him accidentally dropping me."
Nursing staff in Japan face low wages and strenuous work. Currently, 70% of caregivers are women, mostly over 40 years old. The Japanese Ministry of Labor estimates that by 2040, the shortage of caregivers will reach as high as 570,000.
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Visionary, the company that operates the aforementioned nursing home, once struggled to recruit a single caregiver for an entire year. However, in 2018, the company introduced the concept of "muscular male caregivers," completely changing the industry's stereotype. Applications poured in, including from many young men.
Visionary CEO Yusuke Niwa said that they targeted bodybuilders because they are "very photogenic, have a cool image, and can endure hardship."
In fiscal year 2024 alone, the company recruited 168 caregivers, most of whom were fitness enthusiasts. The company offers attractive benefits, including free use of the gym and two hours of daily muscle training that can be counted as work time for caregivers who participate in bodybuilding competitions.
27-year-old Hokuto Tatsumi, a former member of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, became a nursing home caregiver primarily because the work environment suited him well. He pointed out that bodybuilders need to exercise diligently every day and strictly adhere to dietary guidelines; this self-discipline is highly applicable to caring for the same group of elderly people day after day. He said that the caregiving work "seems simple, but it is actually quite challenging."
