Is a 4-day workweek Japan's answer to the 'work yourself to death' culture?

Japan, a country known for its relentless work ethic, where the concept of working oneself to death even has its own term, karoshi, is now grappling with a significant labour shortage.

To address this issue, the Japanese government is now urging more people and companies to adopt four-day workweeks.

While the initiative is slowly catching on, it isn’t entirely new; the government first backed the idea of a shorter workweek in 2021, following a supportive nod from lawmakers.

However, this ambitious proposal raises a crucial question: Can a country that has long prioritised work above all else truly shift its focus towards a more balanced approach to well-being?

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Let’s take a closer look

A push for change

The Japanese government first endorsed the idea of a four-day workweek in 2021 as part of its broader “work style reform” campaign that promotes shorter hours and other flexible arrangements along with overtime limits and paid annual leave.

Despite this, the concept has been slow to gain traction. Only around 8 per cent of companies currently allow employees to take three or more days off each week, while 7 per cent adhere strictly to the legally mandated single day off, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

A recent government white paper on “karoshi,” the Japanese term that in English means “death from overwork”, said Japan has at least 54 such fatalities a year, including from heart attacks.

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Japan’s “serious, conscientious and hard-working” people tend to value their relationships with their colleagues and form a bond with their companies, and Japanese TV shows and manga comics often focus on the workplace, Tim Craig, the author of a book called “Cool Japan: Case Studies from Japan’s Cultural and Creative Industries” told AP.

“Work is a big deal here. It’s not just a way to make money, although it is that, too,” added Craig.

However, the government’s official backing of a better work-life balance represents a marked change in Japan, a country whose reputed culture of workaholic stoicism often got credited for the national recovery and stellar economic growth after World War II.

To encourage more companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to embrace shorter workweeks, the authorities have launched initiatives that include free consulting, grants, and success stories.

“By realising a society in which workers can choose from a variety of working styles based on their circumstances, we aim to create a virtuous cycle of growth and distribution and enable each and every worker to have a better outlook for the future,” states a ministry website about the “hatarakikata kaikaku” campaign, which translates to “innovating how we work.”

Working long hours is the norm

The department overseeing the new support services for businesses says only three companies have come forward so far to request advice on making changes, relevant regulations and available subsidies, illustrating the challenges the initiative faces.

One telling example is Panasonic Holdings Corp where out of the 63,000 employees who are eligible for four-day schedules at the electronics maker and its group companies in Japan, only 150 employees have opted to take them, Yohei Mori, who oversees the initiative at one Panasonic company told _AP.
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Conformist pressures to sacrifice for one’s company are intense. Citizens typically take vacations at the same time of year as their colleagues — during the Bon holidays in the summer and around New Year’s — so co-workers can’t accuse them of being neglectful or uncaring.

Long hours are the norm. Although 85 per cent of employers report giving their workers two days off a week and there are legal restrictions on overtime hours, which are negotiated with labor unions and detailed in contracts. But some Japanese do “service overtime,” meaning it’s unreported and performed without compensation.

Some officials consider changing that mindset as crucial to maintaining a viable workforce amid Japan’s nosediving birth rate.

At the current rate, which is partly attributed to the country’s job-focused culture, the working age population is expected to decline 40 per cent to 45 million people in 2065, from the current 74 million, according to government data.

Signs for change

Critics of the government’s push say that in practice, people put on four-day schedules often end up working just as hard for less pay.

But there are some promising developments.

An annual Gallup survey that measures employee engagement ranked Japan as having among the least engaged workers of all nationalities surveyed; in the most recent survey, only 6 per centof the Japanese respondents described themselves as engaged at work compared to the global average of 23 per cent.

That means relatively few Japanese workers felt highly involved in their workplace and enthusiastic about their work, while most were putting in their hours without investing passion or energy.

There are examples of companies successfully implementing flexible work schedules. For instance, Fast Retailing Co, the parent company of Uniqlo, and electronics giants like Ricoh Co. and Hitachi have all introduced four-day workweeks.

The proponents of the three-days-off model also say it encourages people raising children, those caring for older relatives, retirees living on pensions and others looking for flexibility or additional income to remain in the workforce for longer.

Akiko Yokohama, who works at Spelldata, a small Tokyo-based technology company that allows employees to work a four-day schedule, takes Wednesdays off along with Saturdays and Sundays. The extra day off allows her to get her hair done, attend other appointments or go shopping.

“It’s hard when you aren’t feeling well to keep going for five days in a row. The rest allows you to recover or go see the doctor. Emotionally, it’s less stressful,” Yokohama said.

Her husband, a real estate broker, also gets Wednesdays off but works weekends, which is common in his industry. Yokohama said that allows the couple to go on midweek family outings with their elementary-school age child.

The trend even has gained traction in the notoriously consuming finance industry. Brokerage SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. started letting workers put in four days a week in 2020. Banking giant Mizuho Financial Group offers a three-day schedule option.

Kanako Ogino, president of Tokyo-based NS Group, which operates karaoke venues and hotels, said his company offers 30 different scheduling patterns, including a four-day workweek, but also allows taking long periods off in between work.

“The view in Japan was: You are cool the more hours you work, putting in free overtime,” Ogino said with a laugh. “But there is no dream in such a life.”

With inputs from AP