tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post5673489812189069013..comments2023-09-10T18:34:34.316+09:00Comments on Deep Japan Report: Thoughts on the work ethic in Japanwrightakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845581219533119941noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-75985009967397534312016-11-21T23:50:17.699+09:002016-11-21T23:50:17.699+09:00I love the post very much. It is really good. Grey...I love the post very much. It is really good. <a href="http://www.obcoffice.com/" rel="nofollow">Grey Office Furniture in miami</a> James E Lutzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15737115218751255501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-30639521166455609032013-06-18T18:10:11.408+09:002013-06-18T18:10:11.408+09:00Υou shoulԁ be a part of a contest foг one of the m...Υou shoulԁ be a part of a contest foг one of the mοѕt useful sites <br />on thе wеb. I am going to highly recommеnd thiѕ <br />web site!<br /><br />my blοg; <a href="http://wikischule.eu/index.php?title=Organic_Potting_Soil" rel="nofollow">organic potting soil</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-27488190563154346552013-06-18T07:55:59.366+09:002013-06-18T07:55:59.366+09:00Hi there, I гead your blogs on a regulаr bаsis.
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First time i got to know that this is not the ...Hi <br />First time i got to know that this is not the willingness that Japanese people work for long hours but its a compulsion for them. Here in India situations are very much similar. Most of the companies ask for 9 hours or 9 hr 30 mins in a day. My earstwhile boss was asking for 10 hours. <br />Now i do work independently so its not bothersome for me. <br /><br />After reading this article i came to the conclusion that working criteria in asian nations is always same when work hours come into question.DK Dissectshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11114716435112454547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-71451398109510411972009-04-16T23:46:00.000+09:002009-04-16T23:46:00.000+09:00Hey Andrew. I'm in the process of starting up a po...Hey Andrew. I'm in the process of starting up a podcast with Koichi and Deas about all things Japan. This is a rather weighty topic, but for one would love to hear you say a few positive words about what can be done to help address the overtime situation in Japan. If you're interested in doing a short section, please contact me (the contact form on my website). - I couldn't find a contact address for you on your site :(<br /><br />-MichaelMichaelhttp://michaeldowney.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-90148108876993302582009-04-16T10:09:00.000+09:002009-04-16T10:09:00.000+09:00To all: Thanks for reading the blog and for your c...To all: Thanks for reading the blog and for your comments.<br /><br />@japanwalker I might do a post one day on the redundant tasks that many Japanese workers do. I’m sorry to say that I’m a victim of this phenomenon! There are many tasks I have to do which seem unnecessary and many which would be accomplished far more quickly using technology. <br /><br />@darg I think the point is that it would be better for the company to hire new people only if the employees are actually claiming their overtime! I can tell you that many of my colleagues don’t. My suggestion in the article was to enforce rules such that employees aren’t allowed to report their own working hours. Instead, a separate person should be in charge of monitoring everyone’s hours in the office. Japanese people are happy to allow themselves to suffer for the benefit of the group/company but are loath to inflict inconvenience/suffering on others. That’s why I think rules like that might work. I think 100% pay for accurately reported overtime would be a far better situation than 150% for inaccurately reported overtime.<br /><br />@macthomas You’re right, my post only just scratches the surface. It starts from a young age with schoolwork and juku. The “do your best” ethic is in many ways a wonderful part of the Japanese character but the problems I highlighted in my post are an extreme and unfortunate consequence. I disagree that a work-life balance needs to go hand in hand with individuality though. Like you said, Japan isn’t an individualistic society. Trying to do it the same way as it’s done in Europe won’t work. I think it just needs to be fair and there needs to be a set of rules to protect people that everyone can abide by. The current rules don’t work – employees have to speak out and be assertive in claiming overtime and holiday. Japanese people hate that. Who wants to get hit on the head with a hammer? I think it’s possible to create a system where this isn’t necessary and employees receive their dues automatically. Having said all this, I think the situation is improving and the old guard are gradually retiring from the leading positions they have.wrightakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04845581219533119941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-35505823150602348942009-04-16T05:27:00.000+09:002009-04-16T05:27:00.000+09:00I wonder whether it starts from childhood as all w...I wonder whether it starts from childhood as all wonderful things do....or 'deeper in the culture'<br /><br />As far as I was aware Japanese culture instils this long hours culture from an early age - my mum was telling me once about how the lack of sleep would determine whether someone would pass or fail an exam so 4 hours sleep - pass 6 hours sleep - fail....<br /><br />It seems in Japan you're brought up to not have much time for anything even after school you have juku and it's not like just the geeky kids go to that, everyone goes and you feel left out if you don't attend these lessons.<br /><br />I read somewhere that this kind of long hours, extreme emphasis on hardwork and exam culture was stifling Japan's youth and their ability to think creatively - maybe this has had an effect on people's ability to think outside the box? I mean work life balance is all about accepting individuality, being able to think creatively about how you work and see your life, and accepting differences between people. Work places need to understand that people have different needs. But I'm not sure that's how Japan works - what's that famous Japanese phrase 'the nail that sticks out gets hammered down'<br /><br />EmAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-66430979403162625902009-04-16T02:45:00.000+09:002009-04-16T02:45:00.000+09:00You know, just reading that last line of your post...You know, just reading that last line of your post got me to thinking about a conversation I had once with a Brit I was working with in my office last year.<br /><br />I forget which country it was in Europe - maybe Sweden or something - but they have a law there that if a worker has averaged more than 50 hours a week I think that the company is required by law to hire another employee. Based on the fact that companies that pay overtime should be giving people 150% (sometimes becomes 130%) of their salaries after hours, wouldn't it be better for both the company AND the employees if they just hire more people??<br /><br />That argument seems just so lucid and clear to me that I can't see why Japanese people don't understand it, and yet I still get the same responses you do when I bring it up. Just goes to show that there's nothing we as foreigners can do about it- this is one problem that only they can fix, from within.Doughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05672575871928854138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-34933135715793591972009-04-15T11:51:00.000+09:002009-04-15T11:51:00.000+09:00Hello---
Great post. Found it through JapanSoc.
I...Hello---<br />Great post. Found it through JapanSoc.<br /><br />I'm currently working at an eikaiwa chain, and it gives me the strange chance to observe the Japanese staff firsthand without being responsible for the same work that they are.<br />One thing some of my coworkers and I have discussed is the inefficiency and overabundance of unnecessary tasks. <br /><br />For example, when we send promotional material to our students and their families, each school's staff must hand-stamp the return address on every envelope or post card. For even one of the smaller schools (with only two Japanese staff members), this means hand-stamping over 100 pieces of mail. <br />The company obviously orders much of the material (such as standard envelopes with the company letterhead), so I don't see why they don't order everything with the schools' addresses printed out as well. Even in the case of postcards which they print at the office, they leave the return address space blank to be hand-stamped.<br /><br />This is just one example, but I see the same kind of thing every day I work.<br /><br /><br />Anyway, thanks again for the interesting post, and thanks as wel to Michael for his well-worded worries.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-51968041736781277722009-04-14T07:28:00.000+09:002009-04-14T07:28:00.000+09:00Hi Michael. Glad that you enjoyed the post. I saw ...Hi Michael. Glad that you enjoyed the post. I saw on Twitter that you're thinking about JET. With JLPT 1 under your belt, I'm sure that you have a wide range of options available to you and you don't have to teach English. I started out at a language school and hated it but I've heard that JET is much better. Hope it goes well, whichever way you go!wrightakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04845581219533119941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-86960209650933392872009-04-13T20:59:00.000+09:002009-04-13T20:59:00.000+09:00Thanks for the linkback and detailed writeup of yo...Thanks for the linkback and detailed writeup of your experiences! You've given me a lot of food for thought and some hope that I can live a balanced life in Japan. I appreciate it ^^Michaelhttp://michaeldowney.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-63482442844452082252009-04-09T13:36:00.000+09:002009-04-09T13:36:00.000+09:00Hey Calum, great to hear from you. And thanks for ...Hey Calum, great to hear from you. And thanks for reading the blog! <BR/><BR/>Good to hear that Malaysia is a bit more sane.<BR/><BR/>I totally agree with all of your points but you're preaching to the converted here mate.wrightakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04845581219533119941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3127580361244876674.post-58229671433380267342009-04-09T00:23:00.000+09:002009-04-09T00:23:00.000+09:00Interesting article.Over here in Malaysia the stan...Interesting article.<BR/><BR/>Over here in Malaysia the standard working hours are 9-6. Generally I see most people following that, and not doing excessive overtime.<BR/><BR/>Personally, I try to leave the office shortly after 6. Of course, if there is an urgent issue that needs addressing I'd stay and deal with it, but generally I think it's important to stick to leaving on time for the following reasons:<BR/><BR/>- It makes you think about how to improve your job performance efficiency. If you have it in your mind that you will work for as long as it takes to complete all tasks for the day, you have no incentive to analyze how you actually perform these tasks, and improve them. On the other hand, if you do have a time deadline, you will constantly ask yourself "how can I do this more efficiently?"<BR/><BR/>- Overtime usually produces resulting "undertime"; time when you are at the office, but not actually working very hard, or even at all (concept mentioned in Peopleware).<BR/><BR/>- Working too many hours just wears people out in the long run and ultimately they cannot produce any quality work.<BR/><BR/>- A balance in life keeps you healthy, and even gives you the time to explore ideas that might benefit your work practices or even your company. Just blindly hammering away at your job leaves no time for thinking 'out-of-the-box'.<BR/><BR/>- I could go on all day...<BR/><BR/>I'm enjoying the insight into Japan that you are giving via this blog!Calum Halcrownoreply@blogger.com