Report touts benefits of second jobs for workers, firms
10 October, 2021
Japan's largest business lobby recently released a report it says shows the benefits that can come from allowing people to take on secondary employment, with the arrangement delivering a happier and more productive workforce while addressing some of the nation's demographic challenges.
The report compiled by the Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, focused on the way increasing flexibility in allowing people to take on different, additional work can address labor shortages as well as dissatisfaction with the country's rigid corporate culture.
Although just 22 percent of about 500 companies in the country polled last year allow staff to take on second jobs, the report indicates a larger take-up of the arrangement could lead to people staying in the workforce for longer.
The practice could, to some extent, address Japan's shrinking labor force by giving workers new skills to potentially use in a post-retirement career, according to the report.
Importantly, the report makes clear it is focusing on workers who do not need to work a second job just for financial reasons; rather it looks at people who are dissatisfied and want a change.
The report gives the example of an IT systems engineer taking on a role as an educator as a way skills can be transferred for the common good. Another case study details how a human resources staffer was able to help small regional businesses develop more advanced personnel systems.
Keidanren pointed out that there are obstacles that must be overcome for Japan's work culture to evolve, including the issue of companies banning secondary jobs due to the difficulty in managing employees' total work hours and potentially losing proprietary information.
It said the upsides could outweigh the potential problems, however, with such programs able to potentially spur innovation when employees acquire new insights outside of their companies.
For firms not ready to allow second jobs, Keidanren proposed in the report an option of "in-house side jobs," or letting employees work in other departments of their companies.
The emergence of telework and more flexible employment arrangements driven by necessity during the coronavirus pandemic also can work in favor of these types of work reforms, the report notes.
In a survey that drew responses from 487 companies last year, 78 percent said they do not permit workers to take additional jobs. Keidanren said it is important that firms study whether to introduce the practice depending on their specific situation.
In the Keidanren report released last week, which summarizes the efforts of 15 major companies to promote secondary employment, the lobby said many state explicitly in their employment regulations they will restrict second jobs if there are concerns about loss of confidential information or other types of potential damages.
Among the 15 firms, Mitsubishi Estate Co uses third-party software to monitor employees' working hours at second jobs to prevent overwork.
Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co sets a limit of 30 hours per month for additional work, and household products maker Lion Corp bans working in second jobs after 10 p.m. and requires employees to have at least 10 hours of rest before their next workday.
Major mobile platform and e-commerce operator DeNA Co has introduced a system that allows employees to allocate up to 30 percent of their work time to other departments if they wish.
Mitsubishi Estate has also established a system that requires employees to devote at least 10 percent of their work time to activities other than their main duties.
Source: japantoday.com
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