genba neko (meme)

現場猫

lit. "accident site cat" or "work site cat", translated on Pixiv as "#safety cat"

Originally based on an image of a cat asking "why are you up so late at night?", the genba neko meme primarily references a cat in a hard hat pointing and saying 「ヨシ！」 (Okay!). Unfortunately, the conditions referenced by the cat are often not "Okay!" as a result of simple job site carelessness, overwork leading to accidents, substance abuse, and other gross safety violations. While most pictures refer the pointing "Okay!" image, some call back to the image of the cat on the phone, some depict the tragic aftermath of workplace accidents, and some foreshadow such events (references to Strong Zero and other alcoholic beverages, close-ups of the cat sweating unnaturally, and notes about how workers who skip holidays "are built different"). Some common variations can be seen on the Genba Neko Twitter bot.

This tag automatically adds meme (learn more).