Asia Times: Amid shrinking paychecks, signs of the 'new worker'

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	December 24, 1999	atimes.com

Japan

Amid shrinking paychecks, signs of the 'new worker'
By Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO - Asako Noda, 49, is among the hundreds of thousands of employees across Japan who have already received their winter bonuses, which have been shrinking in the last few years.

But so far, there have been few complaints. Noda, for instance, even thinks there is something positive about the smaller figure on her bonus check, although it is exactly half of what she got five years ago.

''Yes, the going is tough because you can no longer expect big companies to provide us with increasing pay checks and job security,'' said the accounts section assistant in a large construction company here. ''But at the same time, I am willing to take the pain because I am so glad Japan is changing.''

Indeed, corporate Japan is getting an overhaul, and the government is apparently giving the go-signal for the transformation. ''I believe the age of cozy relations between the government and business is over,'' Taisho Sakaiya, head of the Economic Planning Agency told a press conference this month. ''Japan will have a system to suit the new era of economic globalization and information technology.''

Sakaiya in fact heads a team of government researchers preparing a socio-economic report on the ''knowledge-based revolution'' that will take Japan into the next century. Or as he himself put it: ''We are moving away from taking pride in being the world's best manufacturers and creating a society that allows the individual more choices.''

Translated some more, this largely means that millions of Japanese workers are saying goodbye to a system that has held the country in good stead for generations and has even been credited for its postwar economic success.

Now, as society changes further, there are signs that more and more Japanese are breaking from conformity, opting for more creative endeavors despite smaller pay and less job stability, or choosing work routines that leave enough time to spend with family.

In Japanese society, being part of a big corporation has also been seen as a big boost in the social ladder. And for decades, corporate Japan was known for offering its workers lifelong employment in exchange for loyalty. But as Japan continues to reel from a debilitating recession, it has been clear that some changes have to take place. For the last year or so, Japanese companies have been scrambling to cut costs, and slashing the workforce has been among the more common ways to do this.

In truth, the government's sudden concern for the individual following decades of looking after the big corporations may be a mere knee-jerk reaction to a painful reality: lifelong employment is no more, and more and more workers now have to fend for themselves. Recently, the decision by the Nissan Motor Company to reduce its workforce by 21,000 worried many Japanese all the more. As it is, the country's unemployment figure exceeded 4 percent in July, quite high for Japan in the post-war years.

Part-time work is already more popular than ever. Now Recruit Company - a giant in the employment sector - has even introduced a system in which people are hired on a contract basis. These contractuals get high salaries, but they can be terminated at any time if it is determined if they are not up to their tasks. Surprisingly, though, there are many Japanese who say all these may not necessarily be all that bad. Noda, for example, seems to be re-thinking her career moves and has signed up for a university course on welfare development.

''It's hard to say when I will be fired from my current job,'' conceded Noda, who holds a degree in English from one of Japan's respected universities. She added: ''And also, I am now more interested in starting a career in nursing care for the elderly, which I think has better job prospects in ageing Japan as well as giving me more job satisfaction.''

Norio Yutani, 32, is hardly bothered as well by not having job security. Yutani just got himself a two-year contract from Recruit on software production. Aside from a regular salary for the duration of his contract, he gets nothing else - no bonus or other extra perks that a regular employee normally gets.

Yutani had actually been working in Recruit's computer software section for the last 10 years. But when the company announced its new set-up, he quit - so that he could be part of the new system. Yutani says he was getting bored with his old job. ''I have no regrets,'' he declared. ''I plan on opening my own software company in a few years, and besides, I now spend more time with my family as a result of being able to work at my own pace.''

But labor experts say that while these emerging trends could be very helpful in transforming the Japanese worker from a corporate automaton into an innovative individual, the changes will also mean problems for which solutions must be found quickly.

Records of the Small and Medium Business Association for instance show that new ventures have been growing in number in last few years, with 120 as of last year, compared to just 50 in 1991. But businessmen say the development of new businesses is still dogged by the lack of bank loans and other crucial support from the government.

Meanwhile, Seiko Nakata of the Women's Union - the first such organization in Japan that was set up just early this year - calls for faster changes in labor laws that will give women more chances for upward careers. She points out, ''If Japan is going to become a country with a system that is like other developed societies, then we need better laws that guarantee equality in the workplace.''

Even the Economic Planning Agency's Sakaiya acknowledges the need for better safety nets in Japan in order to protect people's rights in hard times. ''The system leaned heavily toward putting the vested interest of business over the worker,'' he said. ''The achievement of economic recovery depends heavily on changing this and protecting the rights of the individual.''

(Inter Press Service)

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©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd.