Hello,
So my gf is currently working in a company where it looks like thing are going sideways. They delayed the salary payment for 2 weeks now, and still haven’t provided anything. And since the next salary date is coming on 20, I am very doubtful they will pay both due amount by then…
She said everyone in the company is in the same situation and that currently the boss is not even there anymore and left for China (but should be back by Monday…) Anyway very scammy and probably the end of it.
Now, as we both know this company is dead, she currently looking for jobs. Since she don’t use reddit I am asking a few questions for her. For the background, we been living here for over 6 years, and both in working visa.
– Is there a way to fight to get those 1(and probably 2) salary back or they are going to be lost ?
– if the company go bankrupt which is probably the case, will there be some government compensation ?
– what the attitude to have in such case ? Like if it was me after getting delayed of 3 weeks and seeing all those red flags, i would have just stop going and do my life, but I wonder if this would make thing worse or make her un-elligible for some compensation.
Did you or someone you know ever faced this situation ?
Thank you for the help.
8 comments
You can go to the labor office and file a complaint but if the company is out of money and about to shut down there probably isn’t much that can be done.
I worked for a company that just straight up didn’t pay it’s employees for months. I also have two friends who worked there too. Im a General Union member so I got paid. My two friends aren’t members so they didn’t. It seems that company only paid people who were members of the union. My two friends had to contact the labour board to get their salaries. They were both successful, but neither of them got an on time pay cheque from the company.
TLDR – labour board, asap.
Have you ever heard of Nova?
Cos that’s basically what happened at Nova before it imploded.
After Nova filed for bankruptcy, many of the teachers did not receive their unpaid salaries.
The government created a thing to provide financial support to the affected employees. Employees were able to apply for compensation for their unpaid salaries etc but obviously that’s a pain in the ass too
The amount of compensation that each employee received varied depending on factors such as the length of their employment and the amount of unpaid salary owed to them. While the it didn’t fully make up for the unpaid salaries, they did get something I guess.
A good chunk of nova refugees just gave up and went back to their home country.
Because their apartment was linked to their employer, they were shit outta luck and couldn’t find a job in time etc, lack of savings/emergency fund, lack of Japanese skill to navigate renting on their own.
This was before smartphone era in Japan just to remind you.
I didn’t work for nova, but a few friends of mine did. I’d try ask directly at the head office for cash.
A friend of mine did that with nova in its final days, because he sensed something was up.
Hope y’all have some savings and aren’t living in company apartment though.
Oh and I wouldn’t bet the boss will be back by Monday.
Here are some hotlines / resources you can use, if you would like to report what’s been happening and find out what your legal rights are in this situation:
1. FRESC (Foreign Residents Support Center), Japanese only: 0570-011000
2. Japan Legal Support Center (Houterasu): foreign language hotline: 0570-078377
3. JP Mirai Assist (many foreign languages but this sevice will shut down after 4/30): 0800-123-5717, hours are 10am – 6pm Mondays through Saturdays
Had a friend who worked in a company like that. They took the company to court and won, but the company decided to be extra scummy and apply for bankruptcy. Friend got a bit of money, but not even a month’s worth of pay and the court couldn’t force the company or the people behind it to pay.
So, you can fight them, but it most likely wouldn’t be worth it from a financial standpoint. There won’t be government compensation. If you notice the company isn’t paying you, go to Hello Work and see if you could get unemployment before making a decision to quit.
Edit: Wow, people downvoting this. It’s anecdotal, sure, but it’s not like my friend didn’t go to the labor board either. Even with their help, they got very little compensation and overall it wasn’t financially worth the time put into it. From a moral standpoint, of course, they were more than happy to give the company their “just desserts.” They had been strung along for months, not just a few weeks. There’s lots of factors behind how much compensation you can get back, but assuming you’ll magically come out on top just by going to the labor board is, in most cases, unrealistic.
Yes there’s a system in place for the government to pay lost wages. Your gf should go to the labor office today to start the process. Her’s a leaflet about it.
[https://jsite.mhlw.go.jp/nagano-roudoukyoku/content/contents/chingin-fubarai_soudan020617.pdf](https://jsite.mhlw.go.jp/nagano-roudoukyoku/content/contents/chingin-fubarai_soudan020617.pdf)
sounds like 夜逃げ if the boss has left the country
I had the same thing happen three years ago and it spurred me to get a new job. I basically started my new job without a period of rest inbetween and my local labour practices office said they couldn’t do anything since I technically was at a fulltime job again with a full wage. I did inform them beforehand about 3 months before I quit that my wage was only 50%.