We encourage everyone to work more efficiently and go home on time.

Two things.

It's about time a government office is 'encouraging' people to work more efficiently. Why 6:30? Why not 5:01?

borscht.

Most city-offices are open to the public till 17:30 add to that time to cleanup, etc.

I was just talking to a bloke who said he had to work from 10 a.m. until 4 a.m. the following day, seven days a week. This is because "Japanese people are very hard worker", he claims. I asked him what he did yesterday, and it was meeting-gu and making document-to.

Thus I doubt efficiency is the watchword here. If you need more than two days to do a day's work, you're doing it wrong. But only in Japan would people need to be told to go home. Shiters, they don't even need to go home - just get out of the bleeding office and do something else. But that might take imagination, I suppose.

I'd also like to know what time Koichi Ishibashi goes home when Ishihara's in the building.

Out of my experience from working in a Japanese office, this quote should be: We encourage everyone to work during working hours (and not overtime hours) and go home on time.

They are geniuses at 'busy work'. I adore leaving on time and when asked 'Are you LEAVING?' simply saying, again, 'お先に失礼します!' With a REALLY big false smile on my face.

I think the whole country fakes a lot of work, but it depends on what sector. I see some very hard workers here and very efficient. What I cannot stand are the people that fake like they are running. I can walk faster than they fake running.

Also many of the staff are bound by what their boss considers being a "good" employee. When the boss was coming up through the ranks maybe he was in the office a ton of hours and expects staff to do the same.

We had the same thing mentioned at work yesterday.

This was at 4.30pm, after everyone had come round from their afternoon nap.