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Japanese only take average of 8 days paid vacation a year
According to the questionnaire conducted in Japan as well as in eight countries in Europe and North America, the Japanese only took an annual average of eight paid holidays — smaller than any other country questioned. France topped the list with 34 days, followed by Italy and Spain with 27 paid days off annually. Among…
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Japan’s working poor scratch living on society’s margins
Hard times have forced a new underclass to move into three-square-metre rooms ? with internet access, writes Justin Norrie in Tokyo. Hidefumi Ito smiles widely when he recalls the sprawling five-bedroom house he built for his family in Hakodate, in the north of Japan. These days the 53-year-old divorcee’s lodgings are somewhat smaller. As he…
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Japan defends steps to end discrimination
In a new report to the United Nations, the government outlines the situation of ethnic minorities and foreign residents in Japan, claiming it has made “every conceivable” effort over the past several years to eliminate racial discrimination. Occasionally sounding on the defensive, the report, released Friday, sidesteps the issue of a comprehensive law prohibiting discrimination…
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Japan’s Shrinking Workforce Spurs Shift to Full-Time Employees
Masahiko Tanabe’s life has changed since Japanese homeware retailer The Loft Co. made him a permanent employee and gave him a 10 percent raise. “This is kind of a luxury to me,” said the former temporary shop assistant. “I used to buy fish for dinner; now I buy meat.” As aging employees retire, Japan’s labor…
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Japanese discontent voiced in novel sales
“We?re going to hell!,” shouts a Japanese fisherman as he boards a factory ship bound for freezing waters off Russia. The sailor and his comrades ? a mix of sea-hardened veterans, university students and poor farm boys ? are beaten and exploited by sadistic foremen and greedy bosses. When they form a union and strike,…
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Surge in number of temp workers involved in work-related accidents
The number of temporary workers dispatched by employment agencies who were involved in work-related accidents increased nine-fold over a three-year period, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said. The finding demonstrates that temporary workers engage in dangerous labor without receiving adequate safety guidance, which will likely have an influence on discussions on amendments to the…
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Helping hand for immigrants
Hope seen in plan to promote Japanese-language education, visas Under the plan, the rights of immigrants, defined by the U.N. as people who live outside their home country more than 12 months, would be bolstered and efforts made to make life more convenient for them here. Those already in Japan would receive the same benefits…
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Foreign workers need social security
Opinion is firming in the government and the Liberal Democratic Party that Japan should more proactively accept workers from overseas. This development comes against the backdrop of the business world facing increasingly serious labor shortages amid the accelerating globalization of markets and the rapid aging of society coupled with the chronically low birthrate. Expansion of…
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DPJ may face backlash over suffrage issue
Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa’s pet project to give foreign permanent residents the right to vote in local elections is facing fierce opposition within the party. The party has been discussing the issue through the vehicle of an advisory body. However, the discussion reached a stalemate, with both sides locked in a bitter…
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Taking time off not so easy
“The disparity in how much time workers can take off or how much money they can spend for leisure has been widening. As for leisure time, the amount of overtime hours has been increasing among permanent employees, while the mass retirement of baby boomers also had an impact,” said Hisaya Yanagita, a senior researcher at…