Japan's new foreign trainee program to enhance rights protection

Many trainees ran way due to unjust treatment, including unpaid wages and harassment.

These are not only trainee program problems, these are Japan Inc. problems.

Wage theft is endemic, even from the overtaxed, pathetic take home pay.

https://japantoday.com/category/business/update1-seven-eleven-failed-to-pay-wage-portions-to-store-workers-for-years

The LDP/Japan Inc. combine will not address it, focusing on things like scams targeting seniors instead.

Reminds me of when they exchanged the Gaikokujin Tourokusho for the Zairyu card. Nothing really changed. Just window dressing

Too little. Too late.

The reputational damage has been done.

One good thing is that there is an unlimited number of willing workers in many underdeveloped countries.

The best will head elsewhere, though.

Japan's new foreign trainee program to enhance rights protection

Hey! Step in the right direction!

But, open the hood and look inside!

A government panel on Friday compiled a final report on a new system to replace Japan's controversial trainee program for foreigners, featuring improved rights protection with increased flexibility for workplace changes and tougher oversights.

It's just a report, and there is NO guarantee that it will be implemented in the final version IF and when it makes it through the Diet!

Talking about it is one thing, actually putting it into action is another.

So many problems abound!

Trainees are at the mercy of a skewed justice system (sic) right from the outset.

I’ve worked on farms in Japan and saw the working day last up to 14 hours.

Holidays?

Japanese don’t take them so why should the replaceable foreigner?

Pregnancy?

A sackable offense

Wages?

The weak yen will ensure that anything saved from meager wages post expenses will be pathetic,

No foreigner will choose Japan as their first choice for a better life

> Originally designed to transfer skills to developing countries, the program has been criticized as a cover for importing low-cost labor as Japan's working-age population shrinks.

They called trainee, so Japan Inc can pay them less than normal wages, however they are subject to mandatory pension, income tax, residential tax, social insurance tax.

So they actual money that can be earn by them even less.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Japan-immigration/Foreign-workers-in-Japan-earn-only-70-of-average-pay

Ohhh the comments here are informed and on point! Refreshing to see.

Slavery and it's brokers have simply become more sophisticated today...

90%+ of these jobs require no more Japanese than "Ohayo gozaimasu" and "kyukei" as they communicate with a culture that only wants to isolate, extort, then send them home once they've used them up.

Get what you give...

TokyoOldManToday  08:49 am JST

Do not come to Japan for Work.

Over the years, Japan has turned very Nationalistic - to the point that many Job adverts (even by Foreign National Companies - JP Morgan, Bank of America, Barclays, etc. ) state a requirement to have "Native Japanese" language abilities... Where-else in the World do you see that written in Job adverts - even those blatantly shown upon Linked-in here in Japan ?

Perhaps stating "Native English" would send most Japanese/etc. packing back home were that to be added as an enforced Job requirement in other Countries.

Don't know what you're rambing about. Knowledge of the native language of the place of work is pretty much universal anywhere. In the US, we simply say "English fluency required".

In the US, we simply say "English fluency required".

I can not ever recall seeing this in a job-advert in the US, as unless other language skills were required for a job, "English fluency" is a no-brainer.

Maybe it's my age showing here.

Funny thing though, is the requirement of "Native Japanese" level proficiency is not commonly seen. Passing the N1 is a requirement for many positions but that doesnt mean the person who has passed it, has "native" level language skills either.

Always unsurprising to see the down-votes come in suspicious looking swarms here. At any rate, people are still growing in their understanding of how this works regardless of media bias, troll farms and censorship etc

has been in place since 1993

only 30 years? that's fresh. usually it takes 50 years to make any changes.

YubaruToday  10:37 am JST

In the US, we simply say "English fluency required".

I can not ever recall seeing this in a job-advert in the US, as unless other language skills were required for a job, "English fluency" is a no-brainer.

Maybe it's my age showing here.

No, it's not your age. How many job ads in a foreign language medium did you read in the US?

The OP complained that job ads in Japan state "native Japanese language ability required", Obviously such an ad woud only be in a medium that is not in Japanese.

Likewise, an ad in Spanish or any other language in the US would say "English fluency required". Obviously it would not say so in an ad in an English medium.

The OP complained that job ads in Japan state "native Japanese language ability required",

This is not an ad typically seen in Japan either. Japanese want quantifiable proof, and just saying "native ability" would not be proof enough for a foreigner!

Obviously such an ad woud only be in a medium that is not in Japanese.

Actually it would be, because if the company of business looking for someone at that level of language proficiency would have zero need to put it in English!

I thought they were going to scrap this "program" aka. modern slavery, not try the "lipstick on a pig" approach because we all know the chances of them enforcing any of these "rights" and "protections" is slimmer than seeing a unicorn prance down the street.

Just stop calling it a foreign trainee program. Call it what it is - Cheap immigrant labor.

AgentXNov. 25  10:40 am JST

Always unsurprising to see the down-votes come in suspicious looking swarms here. At any rate, people are still growing in their understanding of how this works regardless of media bias, troll farms and censorship etc

Right on - Or a sad indication of how many out there support human rights abuse and exploitation. But my first guest is Bots