Letters from Japan: “My Coworkers Are Idiots”
Ask Hilary: Questions From Readers Answered
Savvy Tokyo's resident "Love in Japan" columnist, Hilary Keyes, answers anonymous questions from readers on everything from dating in Japan to women's health issues.
Dear Hilary—My Coworkers Are Idiots
I began working at a new company in January. Before that, I had been at my previous job (ever since I came to Japan) for eight years. I loved that role, but there was no more room to grow, so I moved to a bigger company in the same industry.
I’m struggling with my new work environment, but my work itself is not the problem. My coworkers directly and indirectly cause my issues. I have Japanese and foreign coworkers, and one of each of them is an absolute idiot.
One, an American man, is chronically late with deadlines and can’t be trusted to write documents correctly.
Even when they’ve been outlined in a “fill-in-the-blank” style for him, we have to go over every single document he makes because of errors and inappropriate content. For some reason, he thinks it’s okay to write in text speak in his reports. We can’t even let him email people outside the office. He’s that rude.
My Japanese coworker only still has her job because other people constantly do her work for her.
If no one is around or available to do her job for her, she uses an AI program. She leaves the mistakes for everyone else to check. The only thing she’s good at is talking to clients, and that’s because she fobs the actual work talk off onto the rest of us.
Every week, there’s something new with one or both of them. The rest of the team I joined is used to taking up the slack for both of them. Everyone complains about them behind their backs, though, of course. I want to report both of them to HR and try to see if something can be done. However, one of my coworkers told me it wouldn’t do much good. What do you think I should do?
—Over It
Dear Over It,
I don’t envy your work circumstances. It sounds like you enjoy the industry you’re in, but if your work environment is as frustrating as your email implies, then you might come to resent it if things don’t improve.
As you said, one of your coworkers told you that making a report to HR “wouldn’t do much.” Unfortunately, they may be right.
If an employee works as a 正社員 (seishain; “permanent, full-time employee”), companies can do very little. It is exceptionally difficult, expensive and time-consuming to fire a permanent employee in Japan. In most cases, companies only move forward when keeping the so-called “bad employee” would cause more financial harm than letting them go.
Seishain can typically only be fired for:
- Significant performance issues
- Gross breaches of workplace rules
- Illegal activities (embezzlement, money laundering)
- Extreme business restructuring (though this depends on the company’s size and industry type)
For better or worse, there is no such thing as being made redundant in Japan.
The consequences of an unlawful dismissal on the employer’s side are heavy. Former employees can sue the company for lost wages, damage to their reputation or loss of income. Companies, in general, want to avoid that kind of bad press and the financial costs it entails, which is why seishain are harder to fire.
On the other hand, companies can dismiss contract, part-time and other non-permanent employees with relative ease. However, this again depends on the company and the hiring arrangement. For example, if another agency supplies contract workers, dismissing them before their contract ends could result in fines. The ease with which other types of employees can find themselves left without a job is best reserved for another article, but I digress.
According to your email, both of your coworkers would technically fall under the performance issue category.
Your company is responsible for determining the severity of the performance issues, as the employer bears the burden of proof. If the employee isn’t causing “enough” difficulty for the department or company as a whole, then it’s unlikely that they’ll be fired.
Judging from your description of them, your American coworker seems to be the more egregious of the two. If he cannot be trusted to email others or write reports using business-appropriate language, then he’s a potential liability to the company.
Your Japanese coworker, however, seems to have gamed the system already. She’s managed to get others to do her work but has made herself well-liked by the clients. Unfortunately, that makes her more appealing as an employee to keep around, despite the extra work it means for you and your coworkers.
That being said, if you want to report your coworkers to HR formally, you are well within your rights as an employee to do so. You might even sway HR into seeing how those employees are impacting the business by doing so. However, there are a few things to keep in mind before you make any reports.
Making A Report
© Photo by iStock: HRAUNRecord Everything!
As with all personnel-related concerns, documentation is everything. You’ll need to record specific details of the situation (including dates and times), if anyone else was involved, and of course, include copies of any emails, reports or documents that are relevant to the situation.
If your colleagues also wish to complain about the bad coworkers, that will help as well. The more reports you have, the stronger your case to your boss and HR will be. Also, in Japan in particular, the opinion of the majority holds a colossal amount more weight than that of a single person when it comes to complaints of this nature and/or convincing HR to act.
Speak To Your Supervisor/Boss
Once you have some evidence of these infractions, your next step is to speak to your boss or immediate supervisor. You can’t go directly to HR unless the problem lies with your boss. Given that most companies today have various programs in place to prevent all forms of harassment at work, for most situations, problems with a coworker can be handled at a supervisor level.
File A Formal Complaint To HR
If things don’t improve, or in fact worsen, after talking with your boss and having them speak to your coworkers, then you can file a formal complaint with HR. While every human resources department is different, most have their own procedures and plans for dealing with these matters. Some companies even offer mediation services if things reach that point, although it also depends on how your coworkers respond.
File A Formal Complaint To The Labor Standards Board
In some circumstances, you can also make a formal complaint to the Ministry of Health, Labor & Welfare’s Labor Standards Board. For example, if HR or your supervisor is unwilling or unable to address the issues with your coworkers and it starts to impact your ability to do your job severely, or if you’re afraid of retaliation from another employee, your supervisor or HR itself.
Basically speaking, once you’ve spoken with your boss, things are generally out of your hands. If there’s any escalation or retaliation, then of course you need to protect yourself (document everything!), but otherwise, leave dealing with the bad coworkers to your supervisor and HR.
I know this must be frustrating to hear, but if you are going to stick with this company, then do what you feel is most right for you in terms of your own career. And if you decide it’s time for a change instead, no shame in that either—keep an eye out on Savvy Tokyo’s sister site GaijinPot Jobs to see what else is out there—best of luck.
Got a question you’d like to ask Hilary? Email it to askhilary@savvytokyo.com with the subject “Ask Hilary.”
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