I have multiple recordings of my boss “power harassing” me.
However, none of them are direct like “you should kill yourself.” They are extremely subtle hints about my poor performance, leaving on time too often, taking holiday, toilet breaks, or how I speak to customers. I usually never argue back.
We’re both foreigners, working in a large foreign company.
Is there any point in going to the Labour Bureau about this? I almost fear that everything she’s saying is too indirect to prove anything.
EDIT: Other examples to prove it’s not just me:
– Telling an overweight coworker they would look more professional if they lost weight
– Maternity leave: telling the person that you can’t be a good mother and have a good career.
– I am not the only person considering leaving.
She is so good at wording & delivering comments like this that you would need to listen to a 10-minute recording and still miss it the first time.
20 comments
I would not. Nothing will come of it. Your boss will probably stop trying to give you hints on how to improve your performance making your time in the company more miserable. And other people if they get wind of it may not wish to interact with you if they fear you’ll report them for power harassment for what seem to be offhand remarks.
Why do foreign bosses tend to act like this?
I’m suffering from the same issue…
You attribute the incidents to poor performance which you did not deny, so I would say start looking for a new job?
Some people are just bad at managing people. If you are ready to report to labour bureau feel free to talk back to him at least once. Unlike Japanese bosses, the foreigners might reconsider their behaviour.
HR, not labour bureau. Collect evidence (dates, times, what was said). Does anybody else get treated the same way? If so, go to HR together.
It’s hard to know the situation, but telling them what your problem is first might be a good idea, and tell them that if it continues you might take action. If this worsens the situation then you have more evidence against them.
A good boss should be helping you to overcome any problems you have with the work, not simply criticising.
Extremely difficult to prove this at a level of certainty to win a case. (Particularly if your performance isn’t rock solid.)
Without more details it’s hard to say whether that is harassment, or just standard criticism that can feel shitty but is perfectly above board
Call her out. If she is foreign. She might just have that kind of cunty personality. Not necessarily power harassment. She might just be a dick in a posy of power. Highlight it.
This is a difficult situation, as far as legal advice I can’t help. But I will say this, everything in life is temporary so don’t lose sleep over this. Instead turn this into motivation for your own future. This motivation can be finding a new job or getting better at work, etc. wish you the best!!!!!
Power harassment is bosses using their power to make you work unreasonable hours, pushing unreasonable amounts of work onto you, etc.
Telling you that your performance is weak, that the way you speak to customers is unacceptable, that you leave on time too much (I bet you your contract includes a set amount of overtime per month), and that you shit for too long is not harassment.
Just curious, what’s the need for racial profiling?
Would it make any better if harasser was a Japanese boss instead?
I think we need more details on the kinds of things being said and the next steps provided by the manager on how to adjust according to company requirements.
Have you voiced any concerns about the treatment?
I’ve found that there are a lot of rude Western bosses being dicks to japanese people who aren’t accustomed to such behavior and don’t argue back. Report to HR or go find another job
Passive aggressiveness is considered power hara by guidelines made by the government. submit the recordings to third parties and report to your boss’ boss too. if there is a legal team or HR, do ask for advice.
You join a union. She is probably doing this to others.
So, is she wrong? You don’t say whether she’s making this stuff up.
If she’s addressing things you need to improve, that’s life. Unless she’s verbally abusing you, I don’t know what you can do.
Is there not a step or five missing between “my boss is saying snide things” – and – “I’m going to the labour board!”
This place is like the relationships subreddit; why don’t people with these problems ***talk*** to the person they’re having trouble with *first?*
If it is a large foreign company, I would go to HR. Yes, they are there to protect the company, not you, but on the balance of things they may well feel that the manager is a liability. Can you collude with your colleagues and go as a group??
Gaijin ga Abunai desu ne 😂
Gather testimonies from other people who suffer in your office. Get them signed and written down. Document date, time, etc. Then if your company has an HR department go to them first and say that if they don’t do something about it then you’re going to take it to make a formal complaint to the Labor Bureau.