younger people not wanting to be promoted

In recent years, many young workers in Japan have shown little interest in becoming promoted. Surveys indicate a decline in the number of people in their twenties wanting to be in a managing position. Common reasons include a lack of interest in management itself, the perception that upper roles are little rewarded and aren't worth the responsibility , and the absence of happy role models among current managers.

This shift reflects a broader diversification of values toward work. Younger generations increasingly prioritize personal fulfillment outside the workplace, such as relationships, family time, and hobbies. At the same time, traditional Japanese employment practices—lifetime employment, seniority-based promotion, and male centered careers are weakening. Freelancing, project-based work, and short-term jobs are becoming more common. As a result, promotion and salary increases are no longer attractive among the younger working force , and career advancement within a single company is no longer seen as the main path . 

One additional information that could be relatable to this article is the difference between a normal worker and in a managing position. This article shows that it isn't the position that is affecting the salary, it is the specific job that your are doing is the actual matter. 

I thought that this article was important due to the fact that I thought that getting a promotion was the goal for most of the workers in Japan. 

apa THE21オンライン. (2025, January 13). 「管理職に幸福そうな人がいない」昇進を望まない若手社員が増加している背景. THE21オンライン.

high violation rates in the construction industry

 The Akita Labour Bureau has released a summary of the results of  inspections conducted at wooden house construction sites in 2025. In July of the previous year, labor standards inspection offices n inspected and provided guidance at 179 wooden construction sites, covering a total of 270 business establishments. As a result, violations of the Industrial Safety and Health Act were found at 177 establishments, representing a high violation rate of 65.6 percent.

The most frequent violations were related to fall prevention, with 146 cases identified. These included unsafe conditions such as the lack work platforms at locations higher than two meters, as well as missing guardrails. In addition, 90 violations involved scaffolding and passageways, including inadequate measures to prevent falling objects and failure to display maximum load capacity information. Due to particularly hazardous machinery or dangerous work areas, 27 sites involving 43 establishments were issued orders for work suspension or restricted access to ensure worker safety.

The reason I pick this article is that I have been to these kinds of construction sites as a part tome job. I felt that there was some moments that felt unsafe and might cause accidents. 

But due to the reports from Akita prefecture it isn't just the companies that are to blame. The problems spread more widely. Labor shortages, tight schedules, and limited safety management at smaller construction sites contribute to these issues. The inspections show the government’s ongoing effort to reduce accidents and improve workplace safety.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. (2025). Results of labor safety inspections at wooden house construction sites in Akita Prefecture. https://www.mhlw.go.jp

Breaks in the workplace

Like most employees, you likely work long shifts and work had at your job. Lunch breaks are essential for you to get through the day while being productive. But due to a survey it has been revealed that 50 percent of the workforce aren't getting enough lunch breaks. As a matter of fact 10 percent of the workers aren't even getting 15 minutes breaks due to having too much work to do, even the people that are getting around 60 minutes breaks are still taking calls and answering emails on their breaks. 

As a matter of fact when working over 8 hours  it is illegal for a worker to not have a full none working break for one hour. 

Next, when we asked about the ideal vs the reality of lunch breaks, people who were not able to take a sufficient lunch break said their ideal lunch break averaged 63.1 minutes. In reality, however, it was 44.3 minutes, resulting in a gap of around 20 minutes. 

Personally I thought that most of the workers in Japan are suffering to this problem. They are not taking enough breaks and forcing themself to work though them. Japan has a law which is to, 1 give a break during working hours, 2 give all employees, 3 for the worker to be able to take a break at the time at their own will (not including waiting time during shifts). It is the firm that has to make the change, and the laws need to be more stricter for the workers to have less stressful shifts.