What legal risk for a baito without contract?

12 comments

1. I don’t think you are allowed to work at bars as a student

2. [deleted]

3. A contract always by default exists even if it is verbal. Presumably, there was some discussion of pay, working hours and duties. In that sense there is no issue.

   The question is whether the bar properly files taxes and is not paying you cash under the table, and then whether you are allowed to work at a bar under a student visa.

   Ask to see the bar’s business license. If they are categorized or authorized to run as a 風俗営業 then you can’t work there as a student. Working in an area you are not supposed to can get you booted.

   A very general rule is if working at the bar involves entertaining guests, it is probably no good. If it is primarily a restaurant and you just bring alcohol between the kitchen and the customers table, then it MIGHT be OK.

4. Sounds like you would be violating your status of residence, assuming your “allowance to work” isn’t to work at this bar. Probably won’t get caught, but why take the risk?

   Also, not having a contract exposes you to other risks. What if your employer refuses to pay?

5. On top of this, you are legally required to file taxes on any income that you recieve from your part-time job. (I’m assuming since its under the table they are correctly reporting taxes either)

   Since you probably won’t be getting a 源泉徴収 from the establishment than things can get annoying related to the National Tax Agency getting upset.

6. Is it illegal? yes! If possible don’t do that.

   But realistically, there’s quite amount of language student that works 40h / week like that, and salary by cash. I guess its just more convenient for the part timers, also for the employers.
   Actually pretty common practice too. People just keep silent about it.
   They have no issues going back to their country, also no issues with changing to work visa too after they graduated.

   Those are my friend experiences though, as in my neighbor in share house back then. They seem to have chatgroup for it, to find info about genkin work.

   But again it’s not the legal way to do, not the correct way to do. If you really want to be sure it’s better to play safe. Just sharing the reality haha.

7. Let just say if police/immigration decided to raid the place, and you were caught red handed working in violation of your work permission ( no mizushobai), maybe you get locked up, put in a detention cell pending to court decision to deport your or not. You can kiss your two weeks later leaving on a jet plane..

   Is the bar shady ?

8. I know a guy who did this three nights a week for three years!

9. Pretty much none. I’ve worked part-time as a student in multiple places (konbinis and some restaurants) and never signed a contract.

   The biggest issue would be working in a bar that’s identified as 風俗営業 because that’s strictly forbidden.

10. I wonder if the absence of a work contract also implies no work (雇用) insurance

11. From a personal experience – worked in 4 bars total (Osaka and Tokyo), during my student years. It’s not a legal employment, but I was not the first or last from my uni to do so.

    My uni staff members knew about this, but were cool about it, and it never escalated (my uni staff were great people overall).

    In each bar, I was supposed to be just “a helping hand to the owner as a friend, without monetary pay”. The same applied to all eikaiwas – money was paid under table.

    Edit: Interestingly enough, one of the bar owners suggested he’s also paid taxes on my income, but I never saw the paperwork.

12. You will have no recourse to the owner if they screw you but I don’t think it would realistically be a problem visa-wise, just don’t advertise it.