Japan company offers unique leaves for hangover, celebrity news
Calling in sick after a night of drinking? Need to take a day off after hearing some good—or bad—news about your favorite celebrity? A company in Japan is offering unusual types of leaves to its employees.
The South China Morning Post reported that TrustRing, a tech company based in the Western Japanese prefecture of Osaka, is offering such leaves to attract young people amid a shortage of applicants in the job market.
Japan has faced a shrinking workforce in recent years. Its unemployment rate has remained below 3%. Over 60% of small- and medium-sized businesses, meanwhile, have reported labor shortages, according to The Japan Times.
This prompted some big companies to increase the salaries of fresh graduates.
In 2023, Japan's labor ministry said the country's average monthly salary for new employees was 237,300 yen (PhP90,900). Some companies increased their offer to 300,000 (PhP115,000) and even 400,000 yen (PhP153,000).
Daigaku Shimada, the company president, explained that their unusual leave benefits aim to increase the firm’s competitiveness.
Shimada said they can only offer new employees a monthly salary of 222,000 yen (PhP85,000) plus overtime pay for an assumed 20 hours of overtime.
The benefits turned out to be effective, he added.
According to local outlet Kansai Television, a staff member arrived at work at noontime despite her work hours starting at 9 a.m. She applied for the hangover leave after drinking too much the previous evening.
“I can sleep for two to three hours more and come back to work feeling a bit more refreshed, which actually increased my efficiency,” the employee said.
TrustRing also offers “celebrity loss leave," in which one may not opt to go to work if their favorite celebrities get married or announce news that makes them "too sad" to work.
One employee applied for such a leave when her favorite musician and actor, Gen Hoshino, announced his marriage to Japanese actress Yui Aragaki.
TrustRing has also set up a drinks bar at work.
“The company has good performance," Shimada said, "and zero employees have left in the past three years."
