Notorious for a hardworking culture, Japan launched an initiative to help people cut back. But three years into the effort, the country is having a hard time coaxing people to take a four-day workweek.
Japanese lawmakers first proposed a shorter work week in 2021. The guidelines aimed to encourage staff retention and cut the number of workers falling ill or dying from overwork in an economy already suffering from a huge labor shortage. The guidelines also included overtime limits and paid annual leave.
However, the initiative has had a slow start: According to the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare, only about 8% of companies in Japan allow employees to take three or more days off a week.
It’s not just companies — employees are hesitant, too.
Electronics manufacturer Panasonic, one of Japan’s largest companies, opted into the effort in early 2022. Over two years in, only 150 of its 63,000 eligible employees have chosen to take up four-day schedules, a representative of the company told the Associated Press.
Other major companies to introduce a four-day workweek include Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing, electronics giant Hitachi, and financial firm Mizuho. About 85% of employers report giving workers the usual two days off a week.
Much of the reluctance to take an extra day off boils down to a culture of workers putting companies before themselves, including pressure to appear like team players and hard workers. This intense culture stems from Japan’s postwar era, where, in an effort to boost the economy, then-Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida enlisted major corporations to offer their employees lifelong job security, asking only that workers repay them with loyalty.
Why are the companies making it opt-in for their employees? They should implement it for everyone all at once. This feels like malicious compliance sabotage to me.
Yup
Employees know they will be looked down on and have fewer opportunities for promotion if they work fewer days in a culture that glorifies overworking.
Especially in an environment like Japan too, no way anyone is going to volunteer for that.
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Over two years in, only 150 of its 63,000 eligible employees have chosen to take up four-day schedules
Of course this is going to induce shame in workers to be one of the “lazier few” who opted for a four day workweek. Even if no one says it people will be thinking about it.
That’s another reason why strong unions are important. Sure people will complain it makes workers lazy/less productive, but it helps all members show that workers look out for each other rather than all for the company.
I can’t imagine working for a company and not having the thought of layoffs in the back of my head. Article states that companies are encouraged to provide life long employment which is pretty great. Here in the US, I hop to a new job every 2-4 years since I don’t think a single company is invested in the worker. So we get both the constant threat of layoffs as well as a five day work week. Sounds like Japan is heading in a better direction since at least the government is behind a four day work week. I can’t imagine a single Republikan being in favor of that.
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How crazy an unexpected man /s
Since the 20s they’ve been riding the fuck out of people to the point that they have suicide nets up and now because they realized their work force projections are ass, they’re gonna try and fix things now over a hundred years and numerous generations later?
Good luck. All the people who would’ve used this policy already killed themselves. That’s the grim fucking reality.
