Japanese convenience store chain Lawson has announced a change to its uniforms. No, they’re not getting rid of their traditional blue-and-white stripes. Instead, they’re making changes to their employee name tags, as part of efforts to create a working environment with a greater sense of security for store staff.
Until now, Lawson employee name tags have displayed the wearer’s family name, written in Japanese phonetic text.
▼ A Lawson name tag displaying the family name “Tanaka” (たなか)
However, following incidences of malicious customer complaints, Lawson is looking for ways to protect workers’ privacy and shield them from potential verbal abuse, and as part of those efforts will now allow employees who so wish to wear name tags with Latin alphabet letters of their choice, such as their initials or an abbreviation of their name, instead.
▼ A new Lawson name tag, displaying “TK” as an abbreviation of “Tanaka”
In addition, the new name tags will also display the employee’s position/rank. In the above example, the tag specifies that the wearer is a “crew” (クルー) member, referring to the base rung of customer service employees.
Lawson’s revised name tag policy comes after fellow convenience store chain FamilyMart made the decision last month to allow store workers to use names other than their real one on their name tags.
Lawson also announced that it has revised its employee dress code and will now allow head/hair coverings worn for religious reasons, such as hijabs, in a sign of the continuing ethnic diversification of the convenience store labor force in Japan.
Source: Lawson via Sankei Shimbun via Yahoo! Japan News
Insert images: Lawson
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26 Comments
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sakurasuki
At some point only number being used, just like in prison.
borscht
Or, and bear with me here, they (either management or employees) could use Fake Names! I saw a non-Japanese Lawson's clerk with the name クルー and thought it was his katakanized Cool nickname.
Clerks could be so lucky as to choose their own nickname: 熊 (Bear) , ロキー (Rocky), プチン (Putin), whatever they wanted. Then when grumpy old men or women wanted to complain out loud, they'd have to use the (made-up) nickname. Plus, the name tags could be interchangeable saving management money.
kurisupisu
If some mentally deranged customer wants to vent their frustration on a clerk then changing a name tag just be much help.
buffalo
so if the complaint is legitimate the staff member can say "it wasn't me"?
BB
"Or, and bear with me here, they (either management or employees) could use Fake Names! I saw a non-Japanese Lawson's clerk with the name クルー and thought it was his katakanized Cool nickname."
I suggest カルロス ザ ジャッカル
"おいおまえ - wait, you're Carlos the Jackal? Holy smokes, never mind. Thanks for uh getting my cigs."
Spidey
As much as I agree with using initials, I disagree with listing the employees position/ rank as that may encourage a degree of "looking down upon" to the clerk. A potentially irate customer may think that this "crew" staff has no power and will want to speak to someone of a higher rank. I only think it may add fuel to the fire.
S
Patricia Yarrow
Why would anyone want to abuse a conbini staff? They have a bit of a rough job for not much compensation, plus are still required to don the face coverings for no good reason. Give them a break.
shogun36
Why not just give everyone generic fake names, like a bar?
Tanaka
Nakata
Matsuo
Koga
or like a “Girl’s Bar”
Yuri
Mika
Yumi
The ranking idea is a horrible one for sure. I mean how many ranks are there anyway? “Crew”, “boss” and ????
Peter Neil
make customers wear a name tag.
el
Reminds me of many years ago when my brother worked at a local conbini in the US. They were required to put titles on their name tags, so he put "Serf." He enjoyed the few customers who actually noticed and laughed about it.
BertieWooster
The number of Lawson staff being harassed by customers is so great?
bund
クルー = crew
クール = cool
Seesaw7
I go to Lawson mostly. Staff are polite and respond to communication. No foreigners staff.
wallace
Give the staff amusing nick names.
bund
Why is having no foreign staff a good thing?!
WeiWei
I would think nobody WANTS to, but when the incompetence or ignorance of the staff is on full display, sometimes there is no choice BUT to get angry!
It’s not about abuse or thinking customer is the god, it’s about common sense for thinking the staff knows the store he/she/it is working in.
virusrex
Exaggerating much? there is a huge difference between forcing someone to replace a name in the identification and allowing that person to choose another thing to be identified with, here the person with the identification benefits from replacing what is being shown.
Quo Primum
High school and college students should be required, if physically able, to work at least six months at a part-time job at a convenience store, restaurant, supermarket, or other type of customer-service or retail job.
This will help them learn exactly what it's like to work at such places -- and thus, make it less likely in the future that they'll be malicious or verbally abusive customers.
Wojak Chrollman
Is that an Indian at the cash register? Oh, but his name tag says “TK”. We’re good.
Aaron J
Japan is a bit obsessed with anonymity. If Japan is so safe and it’s so impolite to introduce yourself without giving your name first, why is it so “dangerous” to give your generic given name?
@shogun36 I agree. Just give them work names and identities. There is an entire industry around doing exactly this.
Marlon Brando
I always wondered this too. I think there's an innate distrust of others and the nefarious things they might do.
Negative Nancy
Why is a name badge even necessary? There are only ever maybe three or four employees at any one time.
BeerDeliveryGuy
Just to be pedantic….
クール、ロッキー、プーチン。
クルー would be “crew.” Which actually does make sense in that situation. ロキー would be “Loki” as in brother of Thor and true heir of Asgard. プチン would be an onomatopoeia for the sound of a vacuum being unsealed, made popular by pop-out pudding cups of the same name.
factchecker
However, following incidences of malicious customer complaints, Lawson is looking for ways to protect workers’ privacy and shield them from potential verbal abuse, and as part of those efforts will now allow employees who so wish to wear name tags with Latin alphabet letters of their choice, such as their initials or an abbreviation of their name, instead.
I thought this country prides itself/lectures the world on how polite and well mannered it is. Seems not.
borscht
Bund & BeerDeluveryGuy,
thanks for the clarifying everything; much appreciated.
Redemption
1000 yen an hour to take that sheetz. I suggest customers have to wear name badges and get slapped if they make stupid requests.