Work Japanese

I just left the employ of a Japanese-owned company. There were good and bad things about working for a Japanese-owned company. One of the bad things was that the Japanese employees were consistently unhappy and dour, and man, were they chain smokers. I think those poor addicts spent 10 minutes out of every hour, rain or shine, puffing away.

I was never asked to go to Japan for business. Although I would really like to vacation there, and there are a lot of things that that I would love to experience in Japan, I'm really glad that I didn't have to go for business. This was such a blessing for me. My buddy, who also recently found new employment, has posted about one of his trips to corporate Japan. This will explain why I never wanted to go. You should read the whole thing, but I'm going to reproduce a lot of it here. This may explain the attitude of the Japanese employees.

The men are dressed in the same light two-tone green jackets identified as their uniform, and is only to be warn at work. All wear glasses that magnify the redness in their eyes that obviously comes from suffering for the company. Long messy hair and dirty pants tell me they are here for only one reason. To suffer just like their boss does. The men are expected to stay until their manager leaves. The manager is expected to stay until his manager leaves. He is expected to stay until his manager leaves, and he does not leave until 8pm because he too is suffering for the company.

I heard a lot about this attitude. The workers were expected to be at work until their boss left. They did not work, necessarily, but they had to be there. Going home to their families was not a priority. In fact, the older executives often travelled with a young attractive female. I assumed she was some sort of assistant. But, no, she was the mistress. And everyone knew it. Apparently the wife is expected to look the other way.

The women her are machines. They are all to look the same in their uniforms, which are not to be worn to or from work, but only at work. They are to act like machines, which sit and do work. Machines don’t talk to anyone, they don’t look at anyone, they don’t read e-mails from friends, and they do not talk on the phone. They sit at their desk and work. If they get tired, they sit at their computer and close their eyes while they hold their head up with one hand hold the mouse with the other. This is ok, because they are at their desk, and appear to be working and suffering like the rest...

I have heard that in Japan if you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, you don’t talk about your relationships. Only gossip about others. If a woman does have a boyfriend, she may get fired from her job. The reasoning behind this, is because she will eventually get married, have babies, and have to quit her job to raise her family like every Japanese woman should, (not all do however).

The Japanese women at my job were definitely treated poorly. They were not viewed as important 'team members,' but as objects to be ordered around.

I make a pit stop at the restrooms and try not to touch anything while in there. The toilets are really urinals embedded in the ground. This is typical Japanese. You really do have to squat to do your thing, the toilet paper is really wax paper on a 4” roll. And watch your wallet so it does not fall in either. The urinals are typical American urinals. No paper towels or rolls to dry your hands, so you use your handkerchief you are to carry with you everywhere for a number of reasons, one of which, to dry your hands.

Speaking of getting attention, every now and then, when I entered the restroom, there would be a tiny old Japanese lady hunched over wearing a dirty pink outfit, yellow rubber gloves holding a bucket and scrubbing brush, cleaning like she is suffering just like the office workers. She is just part of the restroom and no one pays any attention to her and you just go about your business.

Pretty funny, isn't it! I can't imagine having to squat like that with the little lady mopping all around me. Talk about performance anxiety.

So, the next time you're frustrated at work, take a deep breath and remember: it could be worse.