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仕事に対する新しい考え方
仕事に対する新しい考え方
日本は景気後退で
失業率が高い状態が続いている。
労働者にとってはつらいことだが、
仕事に対する考え方を
見直すチャンスだともいえる。
A New Attitude Toward Work
By CHRISTINE CUNANAN-NOMURA
The harsh effects of Japan's longest postwar recession have forced many
companies to fire employees. For example, according to the Management and
Coordination Agency, Japan's unemployment rate rose to 4.9 percent, and
3.19 million people were out of work in July 1999.
While this is clearly a difficult and unfortunate situation, it may be
helpful to look at things from another perspective. In many other countries,
for instance, unemployment and job instability are facts of life.
Japan has long insulated itself from such realities, maintaining a
lifetime employment system that has seemed both ideal and unbelievable to
many foreign observers. This Japanese system worked well for a certain
period, but it also made many people complacent about their work lives. Not
a few employees felt that they would always have a job as long as they showed
up at the office every day and did what was asked of them.
The bursting of the bubble economy changed the situation radically.
Suddenly, companies that made bad management decisions were being allowed to
fail, while workers who were not useful enough to their companies were being
fired. These drastic changes were very hard for many people to accept. To
the suddenly unemployed, the end of their jobs was also the end of their
lives.
In many other countries, however, the possibility of losing one's job is a
fact of life that employees must always consider. Therefore, many employees
constantly strive to improve themselves and think of ways to become more
valuable to their employers. While this continuous striving may seem very
stressful, those who have grown used to such an environment see it as a
challenge to keep developing themselves as professionals.
Such thinking also encourages workers to regard themselves with more respect. They learn to view themselves as professionals with skills and
abilities to offer instead of merely being ordinary members of a company.
This sense gives them more psychological freedom and power.
Another difference is the way Japanese and foreigners view job mobility.
Until recently, a job change was regarded negatively in Japan. Employees who
left their companies often had to accept new jobs with lesser pay or fewer
benefits.
In many other countries, job mobility can definitely offer a chance to
change or improve one's situation. In fact, not a few people expect to have a
better life by finding work at various companies and even different
industries over their lifetime.
I recently accompanied the president and vice president of a U.S.
high-technology company to the Kansai region. While negotiating a contract
with a Japanese company, the two sides discussed time frames for the
development of a new product. One of the Japanese managers mentioned that it
would take 10 years to properly develop the said product — a normal
expectation in Japan.
"Ten years? That's too long," said the U.S. company president. "It's very
possible that neither of us will be in the company then!" The Japanese
managers were very surprised at this kind of thinking. However, many foreign
executives would find such expectations perfectly normal.
Which system is better? Both have their advantages and disadvantages.
However, it now seems apparent that Japanese companies are slowly
discarding the lifetime employment system, so employees had better learn
quickly how to adapt to the situation.
The harsh effects of Japan's longest postwar recession have forced many
companies to fire employees. For example, according to the Management and
Coordination Agency, Japan's unemployment rate rose to 4.9 percent, and
3.19 million people were out of work in July 1999.
While this is clearly a difficult and unfortunate situation, it may be
helpful to look at things from another perspective. In many other countries,
for instance, unemployment and job instability are facts of life.
Japan has long insulated itself from such realities, maintaining a
lifetime employment system that has seemed both ideal and unbelievable to
many foreign observers. This Japanese system worked well for a certain
period, but it also made many people complacent about their work lives. Not
a few employees felt that they would always have a job as long as they showed
up at the office every day and did what was asked of them.
The bursting of the bubble economy changed the situation radically.
Suddenly, companies that made bad management decisions were being allowed to
fail, while workers who were not useful enough to their companies were being
fired. These drastic changes were very hard for many people to accept. To
the suddenly unemployed, the end of their jobs was also the end of their
lives.
In many other countries, however, the possibility of losing one's job is a
fact of life that employees must always consider. Therefore, many employees
constantly strive to improve themselves and think of ways to become more
valuable to their employers. While this continuous striving may seem very
stressful, those who have grown used to such an environment see it as a
challenge to keep developing themselves as professionals.
Such thinking also encourages workers to regard themselves with more respect. They learn to view themselves as professionals with skills and
abilities to offer instead of merely being ordinary members of a company.
This sense gives them more psychological freedom and power.
Another difference is the way Japanese and foreigners view job mobility.
Until recently, a job change was regarded negatively in Japan. Employees who
left their companies often had to accept new jobs with lesser pay or fewer
benefits.
In many other countries, job mobility can definitely offer a chance to
change or improve one's situation. In fact, not a few people expect to have a
better life by finding work at various companies and even different
industries over their lifetime.
I recently accompanied the president and vice president of a U.S.
high-technology company to the Kansai region. While negotiating a contract
with a Japanese company, the two sides discussed time frames for the
development of a new product. One of the Japanese managers mentioned that it
would take 10 years to properly develop the said product — a normal
expectation in Japan.
"Ten years? That's too long," said the U.S. company president. "It's very
possible that neither of us will be in the company then!" The Japanese
managers were very surprised at this kind of thinking. However, many foreign
executives would find such expectations perfectly normal.
Which system is better? Both have their advantages and disadvantages.
However, it now seems apparent that Japanese companies are slowly
discarding the lifetime employment system, so employees had better learn
quickly how to adapt to the situation.
Shukan ST: Sept. 24, 1999
(C) All rights reserved
- harsh
- 厳しい
- postwar recession
- 戦後の景気後退
- fire
- 解雇する
- Management and Coordination Agency
- 総務庁
- unemployment rate
- 失業率
- were out of work
- 失業していた
- unfortunate
- 不運な
- perspective
- 見方
- job instability
- 不安定な雇用状況
- facts of life
- 現実
- has long insulated itself from 〜
- 長年、日本は 〜 から遠いところにいた
- lifetime employment system
- 終身雇用制度
- ideal
- 理想的な
- foreign observers
- 日本に注目する海外の人たち
- complacent
- 現状に満足した
- showed up at the office
- 出勤する
- what was asked of them
- 言われた仕事
- bursting of the bubble economy
- バブル経済の崩壊
- radically
- 根本的に
- drastic
- 急激な
- the suddenly unemployed
- 突然、失業に追い込まれた人たち
- strive
- 努力する
- valuable
- 貴重な
- have grown used to 〜
- 〜 に慣れている
- regard themselves with more respect
- 自分をより尊重し誇りを持つ
- merely
- 単に
- ordinary
- 平凡な
- psychological
- 心理的な
- job mobility
- 仕事から仕事へ移ること
- pay
- 給料
- benefits
- 手当
- industries
- 業界
- over their lifetime
- 一生のうちに
- accompanied 〜
- 〜 に同行した
- contract
- 契約
- time frames
- 大体の期間
- managers
- 経営者
- said product
- 話し合われている製品
- apparent
- 明白な
- (are)discarding 〜
- 〜 を放棄している
- adapt to 〜
- 〜 に順応する