Flow of Hiring Employees in Japanese Corporations

March 19, 2020

Question:

I would like to hire Japanese employees at my Japanese subsidiary or branch. Please tell me specifically what to do.

Answer:

Clarify the human resources you are seeking and create recruitment content. Once the recruitment content has been decided, select the recruitment media for hiring and interviews with applicants. If good people are found, conclude an employment contract that clearly defines the working conditions.

Explanation:

Clarification of recruitment content

First, it is necessary to clarify what kind of Japanese staff are required at your Japanese company or branch. In Japan, you cannot easily dismiss the employee once hired, even when he does not match the image of the person you need, so it is important to prepare well in advance to secure the necessary personnel.In Japan, the rules on dismissal are set in advance, as dismissal has a large impact on workers. The fact is that no dismissal is permitted unless there is a good reason (Labor Contracts Act Article 16).

Source: Japanese Law Translation Database System
https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/

Recruitment and interviews

Once the contents of the offer have been decided, you will send out job offers at Hello Work and job information sites. Performance on the written examination and interview will decide if the applicants will be approved or rejected. For those who passed (admitted), working conditions such as wages will be presented to them and they will be formally employed if they accept.However, there are cases when the job offer may be declined so it is important to keep in constant contact until their date of appointment.

The main recruitment methods and characteristics for recruiting Japanese staff are as follows. You will select the medium for providing the job, taking into consideration the balance between the required personnel and budget.

(1) Hello Work (Public Employment Security Office)
It has the largest job-hunting information in Japan at a government agency job placement office. Another advantage is that there is no hiring cost.

(2) Job information site (job change site)
There are sites for job search and recruitment that not only offer jobs but also allow you to approach a job seeker that meets your conditions.

(3) Recruiting services
This is a pay-as-you-go service that allows staffing agencies to introduce people that meet the needs of the company. You can be introduced to people that match your job offer, but if they get hired you will be charged a referral fee.

Specifying working conditions when joining the company and conclusion of employment contract

If you find suitable people from the interviews, it is mandatory in Japan to specify working conditions when recruiting employees. In addition, because some conditions are always required to be clearly stated in writing, you will need to specify the working conditions in the employment contract (Labor Standard Law Article 15.

Source: Japanese Law Translation Database System
https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/

When hiring workers, to prevent problems between labor and management due to the employer not specifying the working conditions, it is mandatory to clearly indicate these conditions when entering into a labor contract. Therefore, when an employee joins a company, you need to prepare an employment contract specifying the working conditions. The working conditions, etc. that must be clearly stated are shown in Chart 7-1.

In the case of a short-term worker, it is necessary to clearly indicate in a document (you can e-mail it if the short-term worker prefers) whether there is a salary increase, bonuses, retirement benefits, and the consultation service regarding employment (Part-time Labor Law Article 6.

For more information on employment contracts, please refer to Q121.

Chart 7-1 Working Conditions that Must Be Clearly Stated