work culture

Japanese politicians want workers across country to have option for three-day weekends every week

Shorter workweek would help fight coronavirus, allow more time for family and education, proponents say.

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Japan drops to 3rd place in U.S. News 2020 Best Countries rankings

What could have happened to bump Japan out of its second-place glory?

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W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 strange Japanese office occurrences【Weird Top Five】

What, you mean you don’t have a Yakult Lady at your office? Weird.

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Boss sends employees New Year’s bonus via mobile app, fines anyone who opens it during work hours

Think your boss is cruel? Be glad you don’t work for this guy!

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Japanese Salaryman vs. American Salesman: Are they really this different?

With many different unwritten rules and an emphasis on customer service, it can sometimes be difficult for foreigners to assimilate into Japanese work culture. Steve over at YouTube channel Steve’s POV スティーブ的視点 put together a video that showcases just how different Japanese and American workers can be. But is it accurate to depict the Japanese salaryman as hardworking, diligent and impossibly polite and the American salesman as comparatively rude, rushed, and sloppy? Take a look at the video and decide for yourself.

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‘Power harrassment’ in Japan’s police force blamed for officer’s suicide

An investigation into the suicide of a police officer in a Tokyo police station has found that harassment from a superior contributed to his death. While the chief is now facing disciplinary action, it has again highlighted the problem of abuses of authority in Japanese workplaces, also known as ‘power harassment’, or pawahara in Japanese.

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Why Foreign Businessmen are Receiving Lessons on Doing Business the Japanese Way

Below is an account from Sayaka, a reporter over at our sister site Pouch. It is an intriguing look at differences in business culture between Japan and the west. It makes one realize that there is no perfect business strategy as such but by incorporating the best parts from each culture, one can get pretty close to their own perfect business model. Moreover, Japan’s business culture has to be one of the most unique in the entire world.

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