HN Reader

Recently I someone living in Japan on Reddit who experienced a "they won't let me quit" scenario which may provide some perspective on what it's like: https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1gk4enr/current_... https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1goyw04/end_of_a...

Personally (living in Japan) I've never experienced something like this, but it does happen.

I think the real percentage of employees using a resignation agency is probably lower than 18.6%. Internet surveys tend to be less accurate and I don't know the methodology they've used to select the 800 or so participants.

But companies bullying employees on resignation seems to be a bigger issue than I thought.

So how is it the company can “refuse to let them quit” or “force” an employee to go to a temple? What is the actual enforcement mechanism other than guilt?

I don't understand, what really constitutes a "won't let me quit" scenario? If I hand in my resignation, I don't really care whether my employer rips it or not. I consider my contract terminated because it's a contract that can be terminated by either party to the contract. If I have a notice period, I'll work that period, then stop showing up. If they want to consider the contract as still valid, they can. And then they'd have to pay me, but I don't see why they would if I'm not turning up to work? There must be something in the above reasoning that isn't correct?

> Some companies are notorious for resignation difficulties, excessive overtime and intense work pressure. So much so that they are labeled as “black companies.” The problem has become so severe that Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s Labor Standards Bureau has published a list of these companies to warn potential job seekers.

If only they were in a position to do something about it.

Sounds like the issues around dating, marriage and children aren’t really cut and dry in Japan. The population crisis isn’t a “just so” thing. The society optimized for one set of criteria but is buckling under others.

The administration's response should be to make it a trivial task, online, via mynumber card system.

So you click here and there in the comfort of your home, insert your card, enter pin and done.

Can anyone in Japan share what ground truth looks like around this? Does this churn matter to businesses when they’re in a labor supply shortage? Do these folks have other jobs they’re moving to? Or are they potentially NEETs bailing on being employed?

I don't get why these companies would want to keep employing someone who has stated that they want to quit.

It's insane how successful Japan is in spite of their corporate inefficiencies.

Reading this, I was assuming that this behavior was enforced by reference checks for new hires being commonplace. However, the few sources I found in a quick search make it seem like asking/requiring references is a more recent practice due to western influence.

I'd guess it's just guilt and shame?

I could flip that culture on its head

In my 20s I had a boss who said he wouldn't accept my resignation, so I stopped showing up. Works every time.

For anyone going through anything like this, one letter from a lawyer will turn everything around in minutes and in Japan, legal advice is fairly affordable.

The posting's title is misleading. 1 in 5 Japanese workers in their 20s WHO RESIGN turn to resignation agencies.

> Those fortunate enough to leave are sometimes asked to send apology letters to colleagues or deliver speeches expressing regret for their “selfishness” and “disrespect.” Of course, these are the most extreme cases–but they do occur, according to Momuri.

So, not that much different mindset than a US startup founder who takes 70% equity, while offering the first hire 0.5% to 2% in options (vesting over 4 years, with exercise rules that further discourage ever getting any equity at all)?

(Edit: Fastest downvoting I've ever seen on HN. :)

Wow, I thought running a business was supposed to be the only job you can't quit because it's the job you pay to own.

The survey (https://career-research.mynavi.jp/reserch/20241003_86953/) which is the basis for the 1 in 5 claim seems sus, I would bet it's not true. (I don't read Japanese, but had Claude read it for me; if someone who does read Japanese could confirm, that would be interesting.)

They say 16.6% of people who changed jobs last year used these services, but only 23.2% of companies report having any employees use them. If 16.6% is correct, the % of companies number should be much higher, supposing companies have multiple resignations per year.

The method for the first number on how they found their respondents is described just as "internet survey," with no further info. There are a lot of ways to do this that would over-sample people who use these services.