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overwork

Government survey finds teleworking at least once per week raises Japanese worker happiness level

On the flip side, the number of mental health illnesses diagnosed that are attributed to work-related stress also continues to rise.

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Japanese government mulling over potential four-day working week

Three-day weekend every week? Yes please!!

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Japanese overtime work culture captured in new dice collection

Roll the dice with employees apologising in the windows of office tower blocks late at night.

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Woman sues Tokyo company after having to work 48 days in a row with limited bathroom breaks

Labor Standards Office recognizes treatment as workplace psychological injury.

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Japan’s “workstyle reforms” are actually making managers’ jobs a lot harder【Survey】

Less overtime for some workers means more for others if no one’s changing how much total work needs to be done.

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Overworked Japan celebrated Labor Day on a Saturday this year

Enjoy your day off…which you would have had anyway!

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How many hours a month do anime artists work in Japan? Survey finds crazy number, unhappy workers

“Just what was it that I ever liked about anime?” wonders unsatisfied female artist.

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Overworked Japanese employees mourn unused paid holidays at new Buddhist memorial service

Workaholics asked to address this senseless loss in a country where taking paid leave is frowned upon.

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Workers’ mental health more important than 2 million yen as ramen chain closes for New Year’s

500-restaurant chain closes all branches to give employees’ time to spend with families at New Year’s.

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Japanese government’s newest plan to fight overwork: Give employees Monday morning off

Shining Monday initiative sounds great for anyone who likes to party on Sunday night, or just would rather not be working on Monday morning.

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Vending machines in Tokyo Station not getting restocked, exploitative “black company” to blame

Employees go on landmark strike to tackle unpaid overtime, receive overwhelming support from netizens.

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“The one and only way to make people in Japan take more vacation time”

Our veteran salaryman-turned-reporter gives his idea for the one thing that has to change before Japan will stop working itself to death.

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Overworked Japanese monk cured by the power of online gaming

Online warrior monk gets his real-life HP restored.

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Up to 40 percent of Japanese men can’t sleep because of work

A new survey reveals that a startling number of Japanese workers are literally losing sleep over their stressful jobs.

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“My dad is less useful than our Roomba”—Japanese 5th-grader’s brutal honesty on family in Japan

If your child has a better relationship with the robotic vacuum cleaner than with you, then you might have a problem.

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Commercial reminds Japan’s tired commuters about the drawbacks of living far away from work

Mouth agape, eyes rolled back, head bobbing – when home is an hour or more away and work continues late into the night, the only place for many Japanese office workers to lay their weary head is against a train car window. This phenomenon is not unique to Japan, but the combination of overwork and limited affordable housing in big cities like Tokyo give rise to crowds of sleepy commuters just trying to get to their futon. If you have never witness the varied sleeping positions of Japan’s overworked commuters, take a look at the following video created by real estate website HOME’S.

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A Chinese bank regulator died from working overtime — And officials applauded his dedication

The Chinese Banking Regulatory Commission Management Committee confirmed this month that one of its staff, Li Jianhua, died of being overworked on April 23 — and has suggested that his fatal devotion to his job is a model for other Chinese workers.

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Survey shows Japanese workers least likely to take vacation time, most likely to hate their job

With the abundance of public holidays and an average of 18 vacation days per year, the stereotype of the overworked and exhausted Japanese worker may seem like a relic of the past. But a recent survey by Expedia Japan comparing the vacation schedules of 24 countries proves yet again that the stereotype is alive and well.

For the sixth year in a row, Japan came in dead last as workers are only taking an average of 39% of their annual paid leave. And perhaps unsurprisingly, Japan ranked last in worker satisfaction.

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