Japan warns firms not to fire pregnant foreign trainees, as interns fear impact on work status
The warning came ahead of the launch of a new visa program that will allow the entry of more workers to address serious labor shortages.
Bhutanese exchange students face extortion, threats and hard times in Japan, families say
Many participants say the program is a scam and they are being forced to repay loans by working illegally long hours.
As Japan enacts law opening door wider to foreign labor, experts warn of challenges with integration
Experts say new government policies to facilitate the integration of foreign workers into Japanese society will be necessary if the new visa system is to succeed.
Supporters of foreign workers call for equal pay and permanent residence in Japan
Activists on Wednesday called for the creation of a permanent resident visa for blue-collar foreign workers and equal pay as their Japanese co-workers as the country aims to bring in more laborers from overseas. In a statement released at a gathering held at the Diet, ...
Chinese trainee wins compensation from Japanese farm after overtime pay amounted to ¥400 per hour
In another incident of abuse involving the government’s foreign trainee program, often accused of being a cover for cheap labor, a Chinese trainee is awarded ¥1.99 million in unpaid wages owed by a farmer.
Undocumented workers in Japan in a constant state of uncertainty
People who live in a state of daily desperation sometimes react to their circumstances with violence against others or themselves and, while such actions are a manifestation of frustration, they can also alert the larger world to that frustration, even if it wasn't intended. During ...
Vietnamese trainee in Japan sent home after asking for paid leave
A Vietnamese man working in Japan under the foreign trainee program was forced to return home after asking to take time off to get married, according to the man and his support group. The 27-year-old Vietnamese, who declined to be named, had been working at ...
Backers of immigration detainees blast prolonged stays as violation of human rights
After a nearly two-week hunger strike at two immigration centers, supporters of the detainees blast Japan’s practice of consecutive detentions as a violation of human rights.
Teachers claim dismissals were invalid in suit against Shane English School
Two British language teachers who worked for Shane English School Japan filed suit Thursday against the school's operator Shane Corporation Ltd., claiming that their dismissals were unfair and invalid. Chris Beardshall, 46, and Adam Cleeve, 44, demanded that Shane pay their monthly salaries until the ...
Record 5,803 foreign trainees went missing in Japan last year
Observers say this is another sign that the technical intern program — long criticized by rights groups at home and abroad as akin to slavery — is seriously flawed.
Japan's foreign trainee program suffering from shocking lack of oversight
Agencies that dispatch non-Japanese as interns under the government's foreign trainee program, as well as a government-commissioned foundation that supervises and instructs them, put corporate profits first and are not fulfilling their oversight responsibilities, lawyers familiar with the program say. The program has long been ...
Japan moves to expand controversial foreign worker scheme
Japan is considering expanding a controversial program that now offers workers from China and elsewhere permits to work for up to three years, as the world's fastest-aging nation scrambles to plug gaps in a rapidly shrinking workforce. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party on ...
