Not Four or Three Days a Week, But a 'Two-Day-a-Week System'... Why Japanese Companies?

All Nippon Airways Implements Reduced Working Hours
Japan Faces Chronic Labor Shortage Due to Preference for Self-Development and Side Jobs

Japan's largest airline, All Nippon Airways (ANA), will introduce a system allowing cabin crew members to work only two days a week, Nikkei reported on the 16th.

On the first working day of the Year of the Black Rabbit 2023, on the 2nd, citizens are walking to work at Sejong-daero Intersection in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

According to Nikkei, ANA plans to allow all 8,500 cabin crew members based in Japan to choose a two-day workweek. Crew members who apply for and are approved for the two-day workweek will have their schedules arranged according to the annual days off decided at the beginning of the year. They will also be able to work focusing on specific routes.

Applications for the two-day workweek will be accepted for reasons such as raising children, caring for parents, relocating to rural areas, or pursuing side jobs. However, ANA plans to set a cap on the number of users during the initial phase of the two-day workweek system to minimize the impact on flight operations.

ANA, which had a standard five-day workweek, temporarily introduced a flexible work system allowing two or three days of work due to a sharp decline in air travel demand caused by COVID-19. Last year, about 40% of cabin crew chose to reduce their working hours. Although air travel demand has increased recently due to eased COVID-19 quarantine measures, the company appears to have made this decision because many employees preferred the shorter work schedule experience.

[Image source=Pixabay] [Image source=Pixabay]

Japanese companies, which have been suffering from chronic labor shortages for several years, face the critical challenge of retaining employees by making working hours and methods more flexible or encouraging job changes. This is because the number of employees wanting to work "two jobs" or side jobs according to the times is increasing, and there is a growing trend of strong desires for self-development through obtaining degrees or certifications.

The Japanese government also encourages companies to adopt flexible work systems. Japan's largest economic organization, Keidanren, is actively promoting the introduction of a three-day workweek and long vacation systems among its member companies.