History Main / NEET

* Earl and Randy on "Series/MyNameIsEarl". Both dropped out of high school and were unemployed for most of their adulthood aside from working the occasional odd job. Prior to the list, Earl and Randy sustained themselves through petty theft, but after turning their lives around, Earl won $100,000 on a lottery ticket. Earl eventually realized that he couldn't just rely on the lottery and he and Randy set out to get their GEDs and jobs at an appliance store, with both losing their jobs after Earl went to prison for a crime that his ex-wife Joy committed (Earl took the blame in order to save Joy from getting her third strike and serving life in prison). Randy got a job as a prison guard so that he could still be with Earl, but after Earl got out of prison, he struggled to find work due to being a felon and he had spent all of his lottery money by that point. After a brief return to crime and a horrible marriage to a friend's former girlfriend, he is given a $75,000 insurance settlement and is back to where he was before.

* Earl and Randy on "Series/MyNameIsEarl". Both dropped out of high school and were unemployed for most of their adulthood aside from working the occasional odd job. Prior to the list, Earl and Randy sustained themselves through petty theft, but after turning their lives around, Earl won $100,000 on a lottery ticket. Earl eventually realized that he couldn't just rely on the lottery and he and Randy set out to get their GEDs and jobs at an appliance store, with both losing their jobs after Earl went to prison for a crime that his ex-wife Joy committed. Randy got a job as a prison guard so that he could still be with Earl, but after Earl got out of prison, he struggled to find work due to being a felon and he had spent all of his lottery money by that point. After a brief return to crime and a horrible marriage to a friend's former girlfriend, he is given a $75,000 insurance settlement and is back to where he was before.

* Near the end of ''Manga/GirlFriends'', [[ClingyJealousGirl Kuno-chin]] mentions that she may not be able to see her boyfriend often now that he's graduated from university because he said that he's become the Housing Security Officer of his own home... which is just a really fancy way of calling himself a NEET, so [[LovableJock Taguchi]] assures her that she'll be able to see him every day.

* Onizuka from ''Manga/GreatTeacherOnizuka'', until deciding he wanted to be a teacher, was a Yankee and a NEET.

PrettyFreeloaders generally manage to dodge this stigma on the account of, well, [[DoubleStandard being pretty or handsome]], despite the fact that they might not contribute money or sweat equity to the household, as it's more socially acceptable for a woman to be without an income than it is for a man (though this is changing). Only a woman in these circumstances who is also actively being hassled for not having a job or being in school can be considered a NEET. A {{housewife}} does not count, despite technically fulfilling all three of this trope's requirements, as they are a homemaker and/or stay-at-home parent.

Compare ThisLoserIsYou, {{Hikikomori}} and TheThingThatWouldNotLeave. HouseWife and HouseHusband may technically describe this trope as well, but in a much more flattering way -- for many, maintaining a house and keeping a family together is a big enough job all on its own. There's also a Spanish version of this trope, called ''Ni-Ni'' [[note]]"'''ni''' estudia, '''ni''' trabaja", [[YouAreTheTranslatedForeignWord "neither studies, nor works"]][[/note]].

In RealLife, the OECD puts the age range for NEET at 15-29. About 1/3 of the NEET cohort is still looking for work; 2/3 are discouraged and are no longer looking for a job. While fictional depictions like to show middle-class [[{{The Slacker}} slackers]] sleeping in their parent's nice house, OECD data shows that NEET youth are more likely to be from poor families and have physical/mental health issues, addiction, and poor literacy skills. NEET women are more likely to not working or going to school due to responsibilities caring for a family member (e.g., a child or an elderly parent or grandparent).

The NEET is most commonly an older teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and the unemployed period has got extended; an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college; a LazyBum with [[TheSlacker no goals in life]], freeloading off whichever pals or family members will allow them to sleep in their basement,
; or they are motivated but only to do geeky hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement GarageBand, cosplaying, penning GiftedlyBad poetry, or playing a RolePlayingGame).

Whether their condition is their fault or not, they are likely to get no respect whatsoever, be called an embarrassment to their friends and family, or have "Get a job, you bum!" yelled in their face at least once. Often [[PhraseCatcher more than once]]. Living in a family member's basement or [[LivesInAVan living in a van by the river]] will probably cramp ttheir dating prospects, too.

; or they are motivated but only to do geeky hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement GarageBand, cosplaying, penning GiftedlyBad poetry, or playing role-playing games).

; or they are motivated but only to do geeky hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement GarageBand, cosplaying, penning poetry, or playing role-playing games).

; or they are motivated but only to do geeky hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement garage band, cosplaying, penning poetry, or playing role-playing games).

Are you just hanging around your sister's house, occasionally watching her kids, doing the laundry, or just playing video games, with no career prospects, no college courses in your schedule and, from a business point of view at least, not contributing much, if anything at all, to the economy? You might be a NEET. '''N'''ot currently engaged in '''E'''mployment, '''E'''ducation or '''T'''raining.

The NEET is most commonly an older teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and down on their luck, an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college, a LazyBum with no goals in life, freeloading off whichever pals or family members will allow them to sleep in their basement, or they are motivated but only to do hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement garage band, cosplaying, penning poetry, or playing role-playing games).

Whether their condition is their fault or not, they are likely to get no respect whatsoever, be called an embarrassment to their friends and family, or have "Get a job, you bum!" yelled in their face at least once. Often [[PhraseCatcher more than once]].

In most stories featuring this trope, the NEET is the designated ButtMonkey, treated with NoSympathy. The DeadpanSnarker will take every opportunity to remind them that they’re useless, while more sentimental characters would, at best, try to motivate them to get a life with a RousingSpeech.

Anything else, such as treating their situation as a symptom of a systemic problem of modern society, is uncommon enough to be considered a subversion. Regardless, it must be noted that the [[BurgerFool modern]] [[SoulSuckingRetailJob unfortunate]] [[JobStealingRobot conditions]] on the job market in many developed countries mean that the unemployed gradually undergo a shift from AcceptableTargets to [[DudeNotFunny being considered genuinely unfortunate]]. Thus, in order to actually deserve mockery, a NEET in modern media is often given other typically negative qualities such as being a slob.

In RealLife, the OECD puts the age range for NEET at 15-29. About 1/3 of the NEET cohort is still looking for work; 2/3 are discouraged and are no longer looking for a job. While fictional depictions like to show middl-class [[{{The Slacker}} slackers]] sleeping in their parent's nice house, OECD data shows that NEET youth are more likely to be from poor families and have physical/mental heslyh issues, addiction, and poor literacy skills. NEET women are more likely to not working or going to school due to responsibilities caring for a family member (e.g., a child or an elderly parent or grandparent).

In RealLife, the OECD puts the age range for NEET at 15-29. About a third of NEET women are not working or going to school due to responsibilities caring for a family member (e.g., an elderly parent or grandparent).

The NEET is most commonly an older teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and down on their luck, an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college, a LazyBum with no goals in life, freeloading off whichever pals or family members will allow them to sleep in their basement, or they are motivated but only to do hobbies that don't have a real career-oriented path (a basement garage band, cosplaying, penning poetry, or playing DungeonsAndDragons).

The NEET is most commonly an older teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and down on their luck, an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college, or a LazyBum with no goals in life, freeloading off whichever pals or family members will allow them to sleep in their basement.

In RealLife, the OECD puts the age range for NEET at 15-29.

Contrast IdleRich.

Are you just hanging around your sister's house, watching the kids, doing the laundry, or maybe even just playing video games, with no career prospects, and, from a business point of view at least, not contributing much, if anything at all, to the economy? You might be a NEET. '''N'''ot currently engaged in '''E'''mployment, '''E'''ducation or '''T'''raining.

The NEET is most commonly a teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and down on their luck, an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college, or a LazyBum with no goals in life, freeloading off whoever is around. Occasionally the NEET might also be a [[{{Hikikomori}} shut-in]], and shunning society due to being unable to function well in it, because of some debilitating disorder, agoraphobia, depression, anxiety, or peer pressure. Whether their condition is their fault or not, they are likely to get no respect whatsoever, be called an embarrassment to their friends and family, or have "Get a job!" yelled in their face at least once. Often [[PhraseCatcher more than once]].

In most stories featuring this trope, the NEET is the designated ButtMonkey, treated with NoSympathy. The DeadpanSnarker will take every opportunity to remind them that they’re useless, while more sentimental characters would, at best, try to motivate them to get a life with a RousingSpeech. Anything else, such as treating their situation as a symptom of a systemic problem of modern society, is uncommon enough to be considered a subversion. Regardless, it must be noted that the [[BurgerFool modern]] [[SoulSuckingRetailJob unfortunate]] [[JobStealingRobot conditions]] on the job market in many developed countries mean that the unemployed gradually undergo a shift from AcceptableTargets to [[DudeNotFunny being considered genuinely unfortunate]]. Thus, in order to actually deserve mockery, a NEET in modern media is often given other typically negative qualities such as being a slob.

If they aren’t the PluckyComicRelief, then they are more than likely TheHero, and the premise behind their story involves finding a worthy goal in life and/or public acceptance. AnAesop can develop in two ways from there onwards: they might get into that college after that cram session with TheSmartGuy, get together with a [[ManicPixieDreamGirl crazy girl]] who would kick their ass into gear, and generally become a fully functional member of society... or they can [[FlippingTheBird give said society the finger]], prove that HardWorkHardlyWorks and find an outlet for their BrilliantButLazy tendencies that render them [[BunnyEarsLawyer appreciated in other ways than most people are]].

PrettyFreeloaders generally manage to dodge this stigma on the account of, well, [[DoubleStandard being pretty]], despite the fact that they might not contribute money to the household, as it's more socially acceptable for a woman to be without an income than it is for a man (though this is changing). Only a woman in these circumstances who is also actively being hassled for not having a job or being in school can be considered a NEET. A {{housewife}} does not count, despite technically fulfilling all three of this trope's requirements.

* Most of the characters from ''LightNovel/HeavensMemoPad''.

* Cuuko (Cthuguha) from ''LightNovel/NyarukoCrawlingWithLove'', whom Nyarko calls a NEET and a {{Hikikomori}} as insults. She refers to herself as a "home security guard" (自宅警備員, ''jitaku keibiin''), which is a term coined by [[ImageBoards 2ch]] with pretty much the same meaning[[note]]technically, it refers to someone who spends all day on their computer, "monitoring" their home[[/note]]. Cuuko actually ''does'' have a job (SpaceCop) and attends a local high school as part of her cover (she's already graduated from [[SpaceX Space College]]), but still chooses to spend all day playing video games and needling [[OnlySaneMan Mahiro]] into cooking for her. She even goes off to play video games during the BeachEpisode!

** Kaguya from is often depicted as a NEET in {{fanon}}. In {{canon}}... it depends on whether you consider being technically in charge of a household to be a job. As a princess, it's arguably her job to not have a job.

* Subaru Natsuki from ''Literature/ReZero'' is shown to be one, as he's introduced as unemployed and frequently references all of the light noves he read and the games he played before being transported to another world. He eventually, however, becomes what is considered to be the ultimate [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype deconstruction]] of how such a person would actually work in real life, culminating into one hell of a [[TearJerker tearjerking]] Self-inflicted TheReasonYouSuckSpeech in Episode 18. All the suffering he goes through up till then has been, to his self-loathing and realization, to be the result of his rotten character, a person who has done absolutely nothing productive his whole life, in spite of having all the time in the world, foolishly thinking that all the knowledge he gained from doing nothing but gaming and bingeing on anime, manga and light novels, that it could get him a better life in another world simply by being teleported there, only to find this to be not at all what happens. He states multiple times at that point that he hates himself for it. Case in point:

* In ''Manga/RecoveryOfAnMMOJunkie'', main character Moriko Morioka is a [[ChristmasCake 30-year-old single woman]] who has dropped out of the business world to play [=MMOs=] all day. She considers herself an "elite NEET" because she chose the lifestyle rather than having it thrust upon her (it's heavily implied that she quit due to the pressures of her work environment being too much for her), but at the same time, she's still embarrassed and tries to keep people from finding out.

Contrast IdleRich and RichIdiotWithNoDayJob.

* Nemu from ''LightNovel/MagicalGirlRaisingProject'' is a 24-year old who plans on both quitting her job and quitting being a MagicalGirl so that she can be a NEET. Before she can do this, she dies of a heart attack as a PlotTriggeringDeath which reveals that magical girls die upon quitting.
* Sora and Shiro from ''LightNovel/NoGameNoLife'', are NEET siblings. At the start of the series, their entire world consists of a small room where they play video games all day. They are quite proud of this fact (for some reason) and declare that ""『　　』" will never do work!" They are vulnerable to panic attacks if they go outside. Most of the time their tendencies are simply PlayedForLaughs, but every so often they get portrayed sympathetically, with implications that Sora and Shiro are not just BrilliantButLazy, and that ParentalNeglect, a FriendlessBackground and possibly outright bullying, and a plethora of unfortunate psychological conditions all contributed to making them turn out the way they did. The lyrics of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X35C9Y-EEk Oracion]]", the ending theme of the anime, all but confirm that Sora and Shiro were deeply broken individuals until they met each other. After all, there must be a reason why Sora holds the firm opinion that {{Humans|AreBastards}} ([[KnightInSourArmor except for a select few worth fighting for]]) [[HumansAreBastards Are Bastards]].

[[folder:Light Novels]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* Indira's ex-boyfriend Aleksei Callahan in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown.'' Oddly, he's a genetically engineered [[{{Ubermensch}} superman,]] but one with [[BrilliantButLazy no ambition]] [[LazyBum whatsoever.]]
* When Literature/HarryPotter’s parents were alive, they financially supported their friend Remus who couldn’t find steady work because he was a werewolf.
[[/folder]]

The NEET is most commonly a teen or college-age male. A NEET is either between jobs and down on their luck, an [[BookDumb idiot]] who has failed the entrance exams for college, or a LazyBum with no goals in life, freeloading off whoever is around. Occasionally the NEET might also be a [[{{Hikikomori}} shut-in]], and shunning society due to being unable to function well in it, because of some debilitating AmbiguousDisorder, agoraphobia, depression, anxiety, or peer pressure. Whether their condition is their fault or not, they are likely to get no respect whatsoever, be called an embarrassment to their friends and family, or have "Get a job!" yelled in their face at least once. Often [[PhraseCatcher more than once]].

* Sora and Shiro from ''LightNovel/NoGameNoLife'', are NEET siblings. At the start of the series, their entire world consists of a small room where they play video games all day. They are quite proud of this fact (for some reason) and declare that ""『　　』" will never do work!" They are vulnerable to panic attacks if they go outside. Most of the time their tendencies are simply PlayedForLaughs, but every so often they get portrayed sympathetically, with implications that Sora and Shiro are not just BrilliantButLazy, and that ParentalNeglect, a FriendlessBackground and possibly outright bullying, and [[AmbiguousDisorder a plethora of unfortunate psychological conditions]] all contributed to making them turn out the way they did. The lyrics of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X35C9Y-EEk Oracion]]", the ending theme of the anime, all but confirm that Sora and Shiro were deeply broken individuals until they met each other. After all, there must be a reason why Sora holds the firm opinion that {{Humans|AreBastards}} ([[KnightInSourArmor except for a select few worth fighting for]]) [[HumansAreBastards Are Bastards]].

* Averted for most of ''Manga/ICantUnderstandWhatMyHusbandIsSaying''. Hajime spends all day at home playing video games while his wife works, but he does have an income via his blog, and later works as a web designer and ''earns more than his wife''. There was a brief period during episode 4 between these two where he was a NEET.