Myanmar woman sues Tokyo-based ramen shop operator over unpaid wages
According to the complaint and other sources, the 28-year-old woman came to Japan in late January 2025 after she was accepted as a specified skilled employee to work at a Tokyo shop of the Mitsuyado Seimen ramen franchise. Under the contract, she was to live in company housing, with about 250,000 yen ($1,740) as her monthly basic salary and fixed overtime pay combined, from which insurance and housing costs would be deducted, leaving her with take home pay of approximately 180,000 yen ($1,250).
After about a month, the company demanded she resign and pay back initial housing costs that the company had covered. When she refused, the firm unilaterally deducted the expenses from her March salary (her first paycheck), leaving her with income of zero yen.
Subsequent deductions continued, with her April pay reduced to about 40,000 yen ($280) and May's to about 120,000 yen ($840). Despite her requests for improvements, the company's stance remained unchanged, leading to her resignation on June 15.
With the assistance of lawyers supporting foreign nationals, she filed the lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court on June 16. The operating company apparently has told her lawyers that the resignation demand was due to her "lack of understanding of the training content." Her legal team argues that wage deductions without the worker's consent violate the Labor Standards Act.
The government-sponsored Specified Skilled Worker program was established in 2019 to accept foreign workers in industries facing severe labor shortages. While the food service industry is included in the program and allows job changes within the restaurant sector if certain conditions are met, side jobs are prohibited. From March to May, when her wages were deducted, the woman apparently relied on aid from support groups and friends.
Attorney Satoko Tomita criticized the company, stating, "This is an inhumane practice exploiting the vulnerable position of specified skilled foreign workers who cannot easily change employers."
There are 22 Mitsuyado Seimen restaurants in Japan and abroad. The Mainichi Shimbun asked the operating company for a comment but did not receive a response by the deadline.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
3 hours ago
- Japan Today
Kellogg says it will remove artificial dyes from cereals by the end of 2027
By WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS WK Kellogg Co. plans to remove artificial dyes from its breakfast cereals in the next two and a half years, according to the company and the attorney general of Texas. The maker of Froot Loops and Apple Jacks gave the timeline as U.S. food producers face increasing pressure from the U.S. government and consumers to phase out synthetic colorings from their products. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Wednesday that Kellogg had signed an agreement assuring his office that the Michigan-based company would 'permanently remove toxic dyes" from its cereals by the end of 2027. Paxton launched an investigation earlier this year into whether Kellogg violated state consumer protection laws by continuing to use blue, red, yellow, green, and orange artificial dyes. Around the same time, U.S. health officials said that they would urge foodmakers to voluntarily work toward removing petroleum-based colors. Both Kellogg and General Mills, another major U.S. cereal maker, said they would. General Mills later joined Kraft Heinz, Nestle, Smuckers and some other food manufacturers in announcing target dates for making all their products without artificial dyes. But Paxton's office said Kellogg was the first to sign a 'legally binding' agreement. 'Following months of investigating and negotiating, I'm proud to officially say Kellogg's will stop putting these unhealthy ingredients in its cereals,' the attorney general said in a statement. Details about the terms of the agreement Kellogg signed, which is legally known as an assurance of voluntary compliance, were not immediately clear. The company did not comment on it directly when reached by The Associated Press on Thursday but said it appreciates 'the opportunity to work collaboratively with the Texas AG's office and share their focus on health and wellness.' Kellogg also pointed to its earlier commitment to phase out FD&C dyes, which are synthetic additives that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved for use in food, drugs and cosmetics. It said it already planned to stop launching new products with the dyes in January. 'We have announced we are reformulating our cereals served in schools to not include FD&C colors by the 2026-27 school year,' Kellogg said in an emailed statement Thursday. By the end of 2027, 'we will completely remove FD&C colors from the small percentage of our foods that contain them today.' According to Kellogg's website, 85% of the cereal the company sells contains no FD&C colors — and none of its products have included Red No. 3 for years. Federal regulators banned that dye from food in January. Synthetic dyes have long been used to make brightly colored cereals, drinks, candies, baked goods and even products like cough syrup. But health advocates have called for the removal of artificial dyes from foods, citing mixed studies indicating they can cause neurobehavioral problems, including hyperactivity and attention issues, in some children. The FDA has maintained that its currently approved dyes are safe and that 'the totality of scientific evidence shows that most children have no adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives.' Pressure on the food industry has increased since Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an outspoken critic of such synthetic additives, became President Donald Trump's health secretary. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Nikkei Asia
6 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
Suntory and Ajinomoto join forces on supply chain decarbonization
A Suntory representative and a supplier discuss ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. (Suntory Holdings) SEI MATSUMOTO August 15, 2025 02:42 JST TOKYO -- Four major Japan-based food conglomerates, including Suntory Holdings and the Ajinomoto group, are teaming up to help decarbonize their thousands of suppliers in anticipation of stricter reporting standards for major corporations.
Japan Times
13 hours ago
- Japan Times
Welcoming foreign residents benefits Japan, three quarters of economists say
About three quarters of economists say an increase in foreign residents in Japan is beneficial for Japanese citizens overall, according to a joint survey by the Japan Center for Economic Research (JCER) and the Nikkei daily. The survey of around 50 prominent Japanese economists was carried out between July 18 and July 28, and released on July 30. Policies relating to foreign residents emerged as a key issue ahead of the recent Upper House election, held July 20. 'By creating an environment where they can overcome differences in language, culture and customs, and demonstrate their abilities — such as improving education for foreign exchange students — foreign workers will contribute to alleviating the labor shortage and improve productivity. And, as a result, it will lead to an improvement in the standard of living of Japanese people,' said Makoto Hasegawa, an associate professor at Kyoto University who was one of the respondents. When asked whether the increase in foreign residents would contribute to improving the average living standards of Japanese citizens, 76% responded 'strongly agree' or 'agree,' with many arguing that there should be measures to better integrate them in society. Just 2%, or one economist, 'disagreed.' Yasushi Iwamoto, a professor at the University of Tokyo and the only respondent who 'disagreed,' said he did so to sound a warning. 'There are many countries in which their immigration policies have failed because they've only seen foreigners as a labor force, rather than people who live as members of society,' he explained. 'Japan's policies are taking a similar approach, so, if the costs are not considered, overall living standards will eventually decline.' Another 15% of respondents said they were 'uncertain,' citing various factors like skill levels among those arriving from overseas. A majority of respondents (66%) also took the view that an increased number of foreign residents would help improve Japan's fiscal health. The number of foreign residents in Japan hit a record high at 3.76 million as of the end of last year, comprising just over 3% of the population, with the figure steadily increasing. Courting an increase in foreign skilled labor has long been a government policy priority as a means to tackle the country's labor shortage. However, there has been a shift in the political discourse, with the government tightening restrictions to crack down, for instance, on foreign residents who have failed to pay pension premiums and health care fees. Japan's weak yen has given many foreign tourists outsized spending power, while inflation has been taking a toll on Japanese households. Such factors have helped fuel a political message that Japan is being exploited. In the survey, a number of the economists highlighted the need for nuance to avoid the conflation of 'foreigners' who may be in Japan temporarily, and long-term, committed foreign residents. While Japan has fairly stringent bureaucracy, in some areas its regulations are more liberal than other countries — such as those around property ownership, where there are relatively few restrictions placed on overseas buyers. On this subject, 32% of economists said it would be desirable to strengthen regulations on real estate purchases by foreign nationals and foreign companies while 21% said they 'strongly disagree' or 'disagree.' Hisaki Kono, an associate professor at Kyoto University, who 'agreed' with such a move, said that nonresident foreigners and foreign workers should be subject to additional taxation when they purchase real estate, while foreign residents with permanent residency should be treated the same as Japanese nationals. 'This will help keep housing prices from rising, which will benefit Japanese people along with permanent foreign residents who are contributing to the Japanese economy,' he said.
