Japanese companies,
increasingly shifting overseas to offset a shrinking domestic market, are taking the first steps to hire
foreigners after long resisting even modest changes to their uniform
workplace culture. But they are now confronting the question about just how drastic that change should be.
Many Japanese
companies say they want foreign workers, but few so far have been willing to overhaul the system - with unequal
pay and few opportunities for promotions - that once dissuaded foreigners from joining in the first place.
A poll last year
conducted by a Tokyo-based staffing agency suggested more than 80 percent of
Japanese companies want more foreigners. But only 10 percent of them said
they were willing to hire foreigners without Japanese language ability.
A separate study
suggested that Japanese companies, long viewed among foreigners as an unpromising
choice, face obstacles in
persuading new recruits. Chinese, for example, were found in one study to
prefer working for Western companies, which offer better compensation packages and more chances for promotion.
But some companies
have started to abandon the
traditional approach. Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., which owns Asia's biggest
fashion chain, Uniqlo, is hiring more foreigners than Japanese. Last March,
English was poised to become the company's official language.
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VOCABULARY
1.
Shifting
(v) - to move from one place or position to another
2.
Offset
(v) - to counterbalance or compensate for
3.
Shrinking
(v) - to become or to make something smaller in amount, size, or valu
4.
Drastic
(adj.) - to become or to make something smaller in amount, size, or valu
5.
Overhaul
(v) - to change a system or method in order to improve it
6.
Dissuaded
(v) - to persuade someone not to do something
7.
Obstacles
(n) - something that makes it difficult to achieve something
8.
Compensation
(n) - the
money someone is paid for doing their job
9.
Abandon
(v) - to stop doing something because there are too many problems and it is
impossible to continue
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1.
What can you say about the idea of hiring
foreigners?
2.
What are the reasons why Japanese companies are
shifting overseas?
3.
Do you think English is necessary in your
workplace?
4.
Why would foreigners want to work in Japan?
5.
Talk about the advantages/disadvantages of
hiring foreigners in Japan.
