View source for Japanese work environment

{{short description|Environment reflecting work conditions in Japan}}{{Update|date=February 2025}}

Many both in and outside [[Japan]] share an image of the '''Japanese work environment''' that is based on a {{nihongo|"[[simultaneous recruiting of new graduates]]" |新卒一括採用|Shinsotsu-Ikkatsu-Saiyō}} and {{nihongo|"[[lifetime-employment]]" |終身雇用|Shūshin-Koyō}} model used by large companies as well as a reputation of long work-hours and strong devotion to one's company. This environment is said to reflect economic conditions beginning in the 1920s, when major corporations competing in the international marketplace began to accrue the same prestige that had traditionally been ascribed to the ''[[daimyō]]''–retainer relationship of feudal Japan or government service in the [[Meiji Restoration]].

== Working conditions ==

=== Working hours ===
[[File:Japan annual total working hour per worker 1950-2023.png|thumb|350x350px|Average annual hours actually worked per worker in Japan from 1947 to 2023]]
Japanese working hours have been gradually decreasing. In 1986, the average employee worked 2,097 hours in Japan, compared with 1,828 hours in the [[United States]] and 1,702 in [[France]]. On average, employees worked a forty-six-hour week in 1987; employees of most large corporations worked a modified five-day week with two Saturdays a month, while those in most small firms worked as much as six days each week. In the face of mounting international criticism of excessive working hours in Japan, in January 1989, public agencies began closing two Saturdays a month. [[Labor unions in Japan|Japanese labor unions]] made reduced working hours an important part of their demands, and many larger firms responded positively.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=2010-11-29 |title=Japanese men working shorter hours: survey |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/japanese-men-working-shorter-hours-survey-2146540.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516015441/http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/japanese-men-working-shorter-hours-survey-2146540.html |archive-date=2017-05-16 |access-date=2017-09-01 |work=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP]] |via=[[Independent.co.uk]]}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=2008-01-03 |title=Sayonara, salaryman |url=http://www.economist.com/node/10424391 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180122235103/http://www.economist.com/node/10424391 |archive-date=2018-01-22 |access-date=2011-11-13 |newspaper=The Economist |location=[[Tokyo]]}}</ref> By 1995, the average annual hours in Japan had decreased to 1,884 and, by 2009, to 1,714.[[File:Annual working time in OECD.svg|thumb|350x350px|Average annual hours actually worked per worker in OECD countries from 1970 to 2020]]In 2019, the average Japanese employee worked 1,644 hours, lower than workers in Spain, Canada, and Italy. By comparison, the average American worker worked 1,779 hours in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Average annual hours actually worked per worker<!-- Bot generated title --> |url=http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=ANHRS |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180413105810/https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=ANHRS |archive-date=2018-04-13 |access-date=2011-01-06}}</ref> In 2021 the average annual work-hours dropped to 1633.2, slightly higher than 2020's 1621.2. Between 2012 and 2021, the average working hours drop was 7.48%.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Takaoka |first=Butch Yoshinobu |date=2022-11-28 |title=Japanese Work Culture: How to Succeed Working in Japan |url=https://www.ejable.com/japan-corner/working-in-japan/japanese-work-culture/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127041112/https://www.ejable.com/japan-corner/working-in-japan/japanese-work-culture/ |archive-date=2024-01-27 |access-date=2024-01-04 |website=EJable |language=en-US}}</ref>

The average Japanese worker is mandated to have ten to twenty days of paid holidays per year, depending on the number of continuous years worked at the company.<ref>{{cite web |title=Encouraging Workers to Take Annual Paid Leave |url=https://jsite.mhlw.go.jp/osaka-roudoukyoku/library/osaka-roudoukyoku/doc/foreign/pdf/yukyu_english.pdf |publisher=Labour Standards Department Osaka Labour Bureau}}</ref> Japan has consistently ranked last in per hour productivity among the [[Group of Seven|G7 countries]], despite the long work hours since the 1970s.<ref name="productivity">{{cite web |date=2022-01-06 |title=Japan's Productivity Ranks Lowest Among G7 Nations for 50 Straight Years |url=https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h01196/japan%E2%80%99s-productivity-ranks-lowest-among-g7-nations-for-50-straight-years.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220106032216/https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h01196/japan%E2%80%99s-productivity-ranks-lowest-among-g7-nations-for-50-straight-years.html |archive-date=2022-01-06 |website=Nippon.com}}</ref> In 2020, Japan ranked 23rd, below [[Lithuania]] in per-hour labor productivity compared to other [[OECD |OECD nations]].

===Employment security===
Japanese employment protection is unique and dynamic compared to other nations.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Lincoln |first=Edward J. |date=1999-09-01 |title=Job Security in Japan: Is Lifetime Employment on the Way Out? |url=https://www.brookings.edu/articles/job-security-in-japan-is-lifetime-employment-on-the-way-out/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220032521/https://www.brookings.edu/articles/job-security-in-japan-is-lifetime-employment-on-the-way-out/ |archive-date=2016-12-20 |access-date=2016-12-03 |work=[[Brookings Institution]] |language=en-US}}</ref> Loyalty to one's company is paramount in Japanese society.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Clegg |first=Cara |date=2013-08-26 |title=Five things that keep Japanese people chained to their jobs |url=http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/08/26/five-things-that-keep-japanese-people-chained-to-their-jobs/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161212152716/http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/08/26/five-things-that-keep-japanese-people-chained-to-their-jobs/ |archive-date=2016-12-12 |access-date=2016-12-03 |website=RocketNews24}}</ref> Many Japanese firms only promote from within; as a result, individuals may stay with the same company for their entire life.<ref name=":2" /> Japanese workers seek to invest and improve their company, while firms attempt to maintain a family atmosphere and look after employees.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last=Tabuchi |first=Hiroko |author-link=Hiroko Tabuchi |date=2009-05-19 |title=Japan Pays a Price for Its Lifetime Jobs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/20/business/global/20zombie.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220031521/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/20/business/global/20zombie.html |archive-date=2016-12-20 |access-date=2016-12-03 |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Disappointing coworkers, calling in sick, and having a poor attitude are unacceptable. Firms in Japan do everything in their power to ensure employment security and prevent laying off employees. Firms' attempts at prevention may include negotiating better deals with suppliers, requesting government subsidies, and eliminating overtime.<ref name=":3" /> The relationship between employer and employee promotes employment security, work ethic, and willingness to work long hours.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Harden |first=Blaine |date=2008-07-13 |title=Japan's Killer Work Ethic |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/12/AR2008071201630.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170615213814/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/12/AR2008071201630.html |archive-date=2017-06-15 |access-date=2016-12-03 |newspaper=The Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>

=== Impact on Japan's welfare state ===
Liberal and conservative philosophies combine to form Japan's welfare state.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/state-of-civil-society-in-japan/B4BFB36963F32E93F372D95A80C82775 |title=The State of Civil Society in Japan |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0521534628 |editor-last1=Schwartz |editor-first1=Frank J. |location=Cambridge |doi=10.1017/CBO9780511550195 |editor-last2=Pharr |editor-first2=Susan J.}}</ref> The welfare state and working conditions are interconnected. As a result of declining working hours over the years, less stress was put on the welfare state.<ref name=":0" /> In 2012, the average Japanese citizen visited a medical facility twelve times: three times more doctors' visits than the average United States citizen.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Squires |first1=David |last2=Anderson |first2=Chloe |date=2015-10-08 |title=U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective: Spending, Use of Services, Prices, and Health in 13 Countries |url=http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2015/oct/us-health-care-from-a-global-perspective |url-status=live |journal=The Commonwealth Fund |doi=10.26099/77tf-5060 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161121193027/http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2015/oct/us-health-care-from-a-global-perspective |archive-date=2016-11-21 |access-date=2016-12-03}}</ref> This is partly due to low-cost medical expenses and partly due to increased stress from working conditions.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1997-02-04 |title=Karoshi-Death from overwork: Occupational health consequences of the Japanese production management |url=http://workhealth.org/whatsnew/lpkarosh.html |url-status=dead |journal=Job Stress Network |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214232217/http://workhealth.org/whatsnew/lpkarosh.html |archive-date=2009-02-14 |access-date=2016-12-03}}</ref>

Stress has a huge negative impact on physiological and mental factors for individuals.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kawakami |first1=Norito |last2=Araki |first2=Shunichi |last3=Kawashima |first3=Mieko |last4=Masumoto |first4=Takeshi |last5=Hayashi |first5=Takeshi |date=1997-01-01 |title=Effects of work-related stress reduction on depressive symptoms among Japanese blue-collar workers |journal=Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=54–59 |doi=10.5271/sjweh.179 |jstor=40966604 |pmid=9098913 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Work hours vary between firms and company size. In medium to large-sized companies, hours have increased. The stress from working over twelve hours a day contributes to Japanese citizens' frequent medical visits.<ref name=":1" /> That a majority of Japanese hospitals are privately owned alludes to conservative influence; the government enforcing strict regulations and pricing on medical treatment alludes to the liberal aspect of their welfare state.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Arnquist |first=Sarah |date=2009-08-25 |title=Health Care Abroad: Japan |url=http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/health-care-abroad-japan/?_r=0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127045633/https://archive.nytimes.com/prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/health-care-abroad-japan/?_r=0 |archive-date=2024-01-27 |access-date=2016-12-03 |newspaper=New York Times Prescriptions Blog}}</ref>

The general Japanese health insurance system resembles a dualist one. [[National Health Insurance (Japan)|The National Health Insurance]] (''Kokumin-Kenkō-Hoken'') is directed regionally and provides mandatory health insurance to the non-employed citizenry.<ref name="Health Insurance in Japan">{{cite web |date=2010-09-06 |title=Health Insurance in Japan |url=http://www.nic-nagoya.or.jp/en/e/archives/4775 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330011654/http://www.nic-nagoya.or.jp/en/e/archives/4775 |archive-date=30 March 2019 |access-date=7 December 2018 |website=Nagoya International Center}}</ref> Until age 70, those covered by the National Health Insurance must self-finance 30%<ref name="A Segmented Welfare State">{{cite journal |last1=Ernst |first1=Angelika |year=1982 |title=A Segmented Welfare State: The Japanese Approach |journal=Zeitschrift für die Gesamte Staatswissenschaft |volume=138 |issue=3 |pages=546–564 |jstor=40750551}}</ref> of their medical costs. Firms are required to provide mandatory health insurance to employees under Employees Health and Pension Insurance, or ''[[Shakai Hoken]]''.<ref name="Japan Pension Service">{{cite web |title=Employee's Health Insurance System and Employee's Pension Insurance System |url=https://www.nenkin.go.jp/international/english/healthinsurance/employee.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712003855/http://www.nenkin.go.jp/international/english/healthinsurance/employee.html |archive-date=12 July 2018 |access-date=7 December 2018 |website=Japan Pension Service |publisher=Japan Pension Servie}}</ref> For the employed, maintaining this access to healthcare is greatly tied to their employment security. As a result, the cost of losing a job also includes losing access to the expansive benefits of employer-provided healthcare insurance. Leaving the workforce due to dismissal, family complications, or health-related issues can potentially diminish access to welfare benefits.<ref name="A Segmented Welfare State" /> Due to the high mandated costs on firms imposed by the Employees Health Insurance scheme, the incentive to provide increased non-mandatory welfare provisions is undermined.

Declining health conditions in the Japanese labor force and the issue of overtime work have led to policy expansion and reform on behalf of the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare. As of March 2018, the Labour Standards Act states that an employer should not exceed a 40-hour work week for employees.<ref name="Labor Law Reform in Japan">{{cite journal |last1=Yamakawa |first1=Ryuichi |date=2011-10-01 |title=Labor Law Reform in Japan: A Response to Recent Socio-Economic Changes |url=https://academic.oup.com/ajcl/article-abstract/49/4/627/2571652?redirectedFrom=fulltext |url-status=live |journal=The American Journal of Comparative Law |volume=49 |issue=4 |pages=627–651 |doi=10.2307/841052 |jstor=841052 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127050308/https://academic.oup.com/ajcl/article-abstract/49/4/627/2571652?redirectedFrom=fulltext |archive-date=2024-01-27|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Exceeding this work week requires an exclusive worker-management agreement, and overtime and this work is to be compensated for with a corresponding wage increase. For example, overtime and night work require an increase of 25% at the minimum.<ref name="Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare">{{cite web |title=Pamphlet: Are Your Working Conditions Fair |url=https://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/policy/employ-labour/labour-standards/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181209124440/https://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/policy/employ-labour/labour-standards/index.html |archive-date=9 December 2018 |access-date=7 December 2018 |website=Labour Standards |publisher=Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare}}</ref> The increasing cases of ''[[Karōshi]]'', or health and workplace accidents resulting from overtime work have led to reforms in the Industrial Health and Safety Law<ref name="pmid17085914">{{cite journal |last1=Iwasaki |first1=Kenji |last2=Takahashi |first2=Masaya |last3=Nakata |first3=Akinori |date=2006-08-17 |title=Health problems due to long working hours in Japan: working hours, workers' compensation (Karoshi), and preventive measures |journal=Industrial Health |volume=44 |issue=4 |pages=537–40 |doi=10.2486/indhealth.44.537 |pmid=17085914 |doi-access=free}}</ref> as well. Although non-binding, these reforms mandate employers to arrange for overtime workers to be provided with health guidance.<ref name="pmid17085914" />

=== Resignation ===
Quitting a job is highly frowned upon in Japanese work culture, and employees who quit often face harassment, intimidation, bargaining and guilt when giving their notice. Employees are culturally discouraged from quitting jobs even if they are facing severe mistreatment in the workplace. Younger generations of Japanese employees have expressed discontent with these norms and in recent years a proxy resignation industry has taken hold. Employees seeking to quit their job will pay an organization to notify their employer, complete paperwork, return workplace property and handle pushback from employers.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lewis |first=Leo |date=2025-02-22 |title=‘You know what? They quit!’ Resigning by proxy and the crisis of corporate Japan |url=https://www.ft.com/content/7d2d47dc-e05c-4ca4-9880-c8550f95288d |access-date=2025-04-17 |work=Financial Times}}</ref>

== Large companies ==

At the very top, the most prestigious companies would recruit and retain the best workers by offering better benefits and truly lifetime [[job security]]. By the 1960s, employment at a large prestigious company had become the goal of children of the new [[middle class]], the pursuit of which required mobilization of family resources and great individual perseverance in order to achieve success in the fiercely competitive [[Education in Japan|education system]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Japanese students' perceptions of the role that shadow education plays in competition in education |journal=Hungarian Educational Research Journal |date=2021-06-28 |orig-date=2021-07-14 |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=143–165 |first1=Márta |last1=Fülöp |first2=János Gordon |last2=Győri |doi=10.1556/063.2021.00059 |s2cid=237818914 |doi-access=free |hdl=10831/82989 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

Wages begin low, but seniority is rewarded, with promotions based on a combination of seniority and ability.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Crane |first1=Steve |url-status=live |archive-date=2024-01-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127033157/https://exporttojapan.co.uk/guide/hr-recruitment/employee-benefits/ |title=Employee Benefits In Japan |url=https://exporttojapan.co.uk/guide/hr-recruitment/employee-benefits/ |website=www.exporttojapan.co.uk |date=January 2024 |access-date=2022-05-13}}</ref> Leadership is not based on assertiveness or quick decision-making but on the ability to create consensus, taking into account the needs of subordinates. Surveys indicate a continued preference for bosses who are demanding but show concern for workers' private lives over less-demanding bosses interested only in performance on the job.

This system rewards behavior demonstrating identification with the team effort, indicated by singing the [[company song]], not taking all of one's [[Annual leave|vacation]] days, and sharing credit for accomplishments with the workgroup. Pride in one's work is expressed through competition with other parallel sections in the company and between one's company and other companies in similar lines of business. Thus, individuals are motivated to maintain [[Wa (Japanese culture)|wa]] (harmony) and participate in group activities, not only on the job but also in after-hours socializing (''[[nomikai]]''). The image of group loyalty, however, is more of a matter of ideology than practice, especially for people who do not make it to the top.

==Smaller companies==

{{unreferenced section|date=October 2019}}

Not every worker enjoys the benefits of such employment practices and work environments. Although 64% of households in 1985 depended on wages or salaries for most of their income, most of these workers were employed by small and medium-sized firms that could not afford the benefits or achieve the successes of the large companies, despite the best intentions of owners. Even in the large corporations, distinctions between permanent and temporary employees made many workers, often women, ineligible for benefits and promotions. These workers were also the first to be laid off in difficult business conditions.

Japan scholar [[Dorinne K. Kondo]] compares the status of permanent and temporary workers with [[Bachnik]]'s distinctions between permanent and temporary members of an "ie" (家, see [[Japanese family]]), creating degrees of inside and outside within a firm. Traditions of entrepreneurship and of inheritance of the means of livelihood continued among merchants, artisans, farmers, and fishermen, still nearly 20% of the work force in 1985. These workers gave up security for autonomy and, when economically necessary, supplemented household income with wage employment.

Traditionally, such businesses use unpaid family labor, but wives or even husbands are likely to go off to work in factories or offices and leave spouses or retired parents to work the farm or mind the shop. On one hand, policies of [[decentralization]] provide factory jobs locally for families that farm part-time; on the other hand, [[unemployment]] created by [[deindustrialization]] affects rural as well as urban workers. Whereas unemployment is low in Japan compared with other industrialized nations (less than 3% through the late 1980s), an estimated 400,000 day laborers share none of the security or affluence enjoyed by those employees with lifetime-employment benefits.

In the standard model, workers receive two fairly large bonuses as well as their regular salary, one mid-year and the other at year's end. In 1988 workers in large companies received bonuses equivalent to their pay for 1.9 months while workers in the smallest firms gained bonuses equal to 1.2 months' pay. In addition to bonuses, Japanese workers received a number of fringe benefits, such as living allowances, incentive payments, remuneration for special job conditions, allowances for good attendance, and cost-of-living allowances.

==Karoshi==
{{main|Karoshi}}
Karoshi is death by overworking in the Japanese workplace. These are commonly caused by [[heart attack]] and [[stroke]], as well as [[suicide]], brought on by high amounts of [[Stress (biological)|stress]] from working 60 hours or more per week.<ref>(Kumarshiro, 1993: 9)</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=July 2018}}

=== Matsuri Takahashi's case (2016) ===
In 2016, the suicide of an overworked young woman brought Japan's working environment into question once again. Matsuri Takahashi, then 24, committed suicide on Christmas Day of 2015 after excessive overwork at [[Dentsu|Dentsu Inc.]], a major Japanese advertising agency.<ref>{{Cite news |work=[[CNN Business|CNN Money]] |url=https://money.cnn.com/2016/11/30/news/economy/japan-workers-overwork-death/index.html|title=Death by overwork: Pressure mounts on Japan to act|last1=Jozuka|first1=Emiko |first2=Yoko |last2=Wakatsuki|date=2016-11-30|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203125743/http://money.cnn.com/2016/11/30/news/economy/japan-workers-overwork-death/index.html|archive-date=2016-12-03|url-status=live}}</ref> Her suicide occurred only 8 months after she got her first full-time job at Dentsu, straight out of college. Her social media posts suggested that she was getting less than 2 hours of sleep per day before she committed suicide. Her death was acknowledged as death related to work, known as "karoshi" in Japanese, by Mita Labor Standard Inspection Office in Tokyo.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-12600000-Seisakutoukatsukan/0000122726.pdf|title=Labor Law in Japan|last=Ministry of Labor, Health and Welfare|date=April 2016|website=Ministry of Labor, Health and Welfare|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519091011/http://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-12600000-Seisakutoukatsukan/0000122726.pdf|archive-date=2017-05-19|url-status=dead}}</ref>

According to the early reports by the labor standard inspection office, Matsuri Takahashi had more than 105 hours of monthly overtime. According to the [[Japanese labor law]], only 8 hours a day, or 40 hours a week, are allowed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-12600000-Seisakutoukatsukan/0000122726.pdf|title=Labor Law in Japan|last=Ministry of Labor, Health and Welfare|date=April 2016|website=Ministry of Labor, Health and Welfare|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519091011/http://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/06-Seisakujouhou-12600000-Seisakutoukatsukan/0000122726.pdf |trans-title=Labor laws that are useful to know |archive-date=2017-05-19|url-status=dead}}</ref> If Japanese companies wish to extend their employee's working hours, they must first conclude special treaties to get acceptance from the government, per [https://ja.wikibooks.org/wiki/労働基準法第36条 Labor Standards Act No.36].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://law.e-gov.go.jp/htmldata/S22/S22HO049.html|title=労働基準法|website=law.e-gov.go.jp|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120825205438/http://law.e-gov.go.jp/htmldata/S22/S22HO049.html |trans-title=Labor Standards Act (Act No. 49 of April 7, 19, 1920)|archive-date=2012-08-25|url-status=dead}}</ref> Within the limitation made by the treaty, working hours could be decided among employees, employers and labor unions. However, unions in Japan usually agree with the decisions made by the corporation.<ref>{{Cite book|title=労働法を考える|last=脇田|first=滋|publisher=新日本出版社|year=2007|location=日本|pages=46,112}}</ref>

This case was especially focused on by the public and death from overwork was again in public attention. After hearing public reaction on this matter, labor standard inspection office had compulsory inspection to Dentsu, and revealed there was a corporate norm to make sure its employees were recording less working time when they enter or exit the office.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sankei.com/life/news/161107/lif1611070048-n1.html |trans-title=Unusual investigation, female to malignity, in the background of "work style reform"|title=【電通に強制捜査】異例の捜査、悪質性にメス 「働き方改革」背景に|newspaper=産経ニュース|language=ja-JP|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110064536/http://www.sankei.com/life/news/161107/lif1611070048-n1.html|archive-date=2016-11-10|url-status=live}}</ref> This case was shocking because Matsuri Takahashi was not the first young employee to have committed suicide in Dentsu. In 1991, a young Dentsu employee killed himself in a similar circumstance.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://mainichi.jp/articles/20161108/ddm/005/070/028000c |trans-title=Forced investigation of Dentsu, one hundred punishments for corporate climate|title=社説：電通を強制捜査 企業風土への一罰百戒 - 毎日新聞|newspaper=毎日新聞|language=ja-JP|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203130016/http://mainichi.jp/articles/20161108/ddm/005/070/028000c|archive-date=2016-12-03|url-status=live}}</ref> After this incident, there was an order from the Supreme Court in 2000 toward Dentsu to improve working conditions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.courts.go.jp/app/hanrei_jp/detail2?id=52222 |trans-title=Details of the court case results|title=裁判所 {{!}} 裁判例情報:検索結果詳細画面|website=www.courts.go.jp|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014104938/http://www.courts.go.jp/app/hanrei_jp/detail2?id=52222|archive-date=2016-10-14|url-status=live}}</ref>

Matsuri Takahashi's case proved that Dentsu's corporate environment had not changed since the death of its employees in 1991. Dentsu blamed Matsuri Takahashi's case partly on a serious lack of humanpower in the growing divisions, such as internet advisement. The CEO of Dentsu made an announcement to the public saying, "We should have come to grips with the situation by increasing the number of staff in those divisions".<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201610080036.html |trans-title=Suicide of young Dentsu employee recognized as due to overwork |title=Suicide of young Dentsu employee recognized as due to overwork：The Asahi Shimbun|newspaper=The Asahi Shimbun|language=en-us|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203130751/http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201610080036.html|archive-date=2016-12-03|url-status=dead}}</ref> In Japan, lifetime employment still remains in numbers of companies and therefore, it is difficult to hire and fire people depending on the company's needs.<ref>{{Cite book|title=日本型経営の動向と課題:経営学論集第76集|last=日本経営学会|publisher=千倉書房|year=2006|location=日本|pages=136}}</ref> This CEO's quote indicates a Japanese social structure which is stable but has low mobility which may cause stress toward employees.

After her case, the [[Shinzo Abe|Abe]] administration pitched a conference to improve working conditions in Japan.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.asahi.com/business/reuters/CRBKBN1360CG.html|title=アングル：電通社員の過労死問題、残業規制を改革の俎上に - ロイターニュース - 経済：朝日新聞デジタル|newspaper=朝日新聞デジタル|language=ja-JP|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220033600/http://www.asahi.com/business/reuters/CRBKBN1360CG.html |trans-title=Angle: The problem of overwork death of Dentsu employees, overtime regulations on the reform|archive-date=2016-12-20|url-status=dead}}</ref> The first meeting was held in September, 2016. In addition to that, the Japanese government announced their first report about over-worked death. According to this official announcement, 23% of the major companies in Japan have possibility of having illegal over-work.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mhlw.go.jp/wp/hakusyo/karoushi/16/ |trans-title=2016 White Paper on Measures to Prevent Death from Overwork (text) |title=平成28年版過労死等防止対策白書（本文） ｜厚生労働省|website=www.mhlw.go.jp|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161202105449/http://www.mhlw.go.jp/wp/hakusyo/karoushi/16/|archive-date=2016-12-02|url-status=live}}</ref> The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Yasuhisa Shiozaki, who is responsible for Labour Standard Inspection Office, emphasised the importance of strengthening these sectors.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sankei.com/affairs/news/161018/afr1610180007-n1.html |trans-title=Dentsu subsidiary also entered, Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Yasuhisa Shiozaki "Suicide in the past. An extremely regrettable case"|title=【電通女性社員自殺】電通子会社も立ち入り 塩崎恭久厚労相「過去にも自殺者。極めて遺憾なケース」|newspaper=産経ニュース|language=ja-JP|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021235652/http://www.sankei.com/affairs/news/161018/afr1610180007-n1.html|archive-date=2016-10-21|url-status=live}}</ref>

The labour standard inspection office is now suffering from lack of manpower compared to the numbers of companies they need to investigate.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://yomidr.yomiuri.co.jp/article/20131231-OYTEW52149/ |trans-title=Labor Standards Supervisor Actual situation and issues ... Employment environment, strict check|title=労働基準監督官 実情と課題…雇用環境、厳しくチェック : yomiDr. / ヨミドクター（読売新聞）|newspaper=yomiDr. / ヨミドクター（読売新聞）|language=ja-JP|access-date=2016-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203125815/https://yomidr.yomiuri.co.jp/article/20131231-OYTEW52149/|archive-date=2016-12-03|url-status=live}}</ref> After facing criticism from the public, Labour Standards Act No.36 now faces the possibility of amendment, for it has proven its incompetence. Although many of the labour law are claimed to be amended, the social norm of Japan, including strong corporatism, are preventing these laws to be no more than self-imposed control and effort obligation.

==Future==
There is a growing shift in Japanese working conditions, due to both the government intervention as a result of declining birth rates and labour productivity, and companies competing for increasingly scarce numbers of workers due to a drop in the working-age population as a result of low birth rates. Many Japanese companies are reducing work hours and improving working conditions, including by providing amenities such as sports facilities and gyms. The Japanese government is pushing through a bill that would make it compulsory for employees to take a minimum of five days leave, and to ensure that high-income employees in certain sectors such as finance be paid according to performance rather than hours worked.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/6749bab6-dc25-11e4-b70d-00144feab7de.html#axzz3wEQRQGQm |location=Tokyo |title=Japan Inc says sayonara to culture of long working hours |newspaper=Financial Times |date=7 April 2015 |access-date=2016-01-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160716050530/http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/6749bab6-dc25-11e4-b70d-00144feab7de.html#axzz3wEQRQGQm |archive-date=2016-07-16 |url-status=live |last1=Inagaki |first1=Kana }}</ref>

The issue of work conditions was even prioritised by the former [[Prime Minister of Japan|Prime Minister]] [[Shinzo Abe]]. In 2019, the Act on the Arrangement of related Acts to Promote Work Style Reform, which is also known as the Work Style Reform Act, was passed by the [[National Diet]]. This law sought to reform eight key labour laws to improve working conditions.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Demetriou |first=Danielle |title=How the Japanese are putting an end to extreme work weeks |url=https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200114-how-the-japanese-are-putting-an-end-to-death-from-overwork |date=2020-01-18|access-date=2022-08-21 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en |url-status=live |archive-date=2024-01-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127052333/https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200114-how-the-japanese-are-putting-an-end-to-death-from-overwork}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |work=Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |title=Work Style Reform Act|url=https://www.amt-law.com/en/publications/detail/publication_0019879_en_001 |access-date=2022-08-21|language=en |archive-date=2024-01-27 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127052135/https://www.amt-law.com/en/publications/detail/publication_0019879_en_001}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Japan|Business}}
* [[Labor unions in Japan|Labour unions in Japan]]
* [[Black company (Japan)]]
* [[Simultaneous recruiting of new graduates]]
* [[Japanese employment law]]
* [[Japanese management culture]]
* [[Salaryman|Salarprioritized]]
* [[Japanese blue collar workers]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
* {{Country study}} - [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/jptoc.html Japan]

==External links==
*[http://donmaclaren.com/my_life_in_corporate_japan.html My Life in Corporate Japan]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140222201142/http://japanese.lingualift.com/blog/business-japanese-politeness-levels/ Politeness levels in business Japanese]

{{Japanese social terms}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Work environment}}
[[Category:Society of Japan]]
[[Category:Economy of Japan]]
[[Category:Employment in Japan]]