Working Well in Japan

Long working hours can affect sleep, physical health, and mental well-being. But did you know that Japan's health protection requirements also apply to managers?

In this episode, we explore why employers in Japan must monitor working hours, what the 80-hour threshold means for medical interviews, and how HR and managers can help prevent work-related health problems.

We also look at the challenges of working across time zones in global teams.

The key message: Tracking working hours isn't just about compliance. It's about protecting employee health — including managers' health.

Working Well in Japan offers practical insights into occupational health and workplace well-being for managers and HR professionals working with teams in Japan.

Supporting employee health and well-being is an important part of creating a healthy workplace. But when an employee seems unwell, managers may not always know what to do—or where their responsibility begins and ends.

In Japan, employers have a legal duty to protect employees’ health and safety at work. Managers play an important role in putting this duty into practice through what’s known as line care.

So, what should you do when an employee seems unwell? How can you show concern without overstepping? And when should you involve Occupational Health or HR?

In this episode of Working Well in Japan, I share five practical steps for managers, based on my experience as an occupational health physician in Japan:

Notice. Listen. Connect. Adjust. Follow up.

We'll explore how to notice changes, start supportive conversations, connect employees with the right support, make adjustments at work, and follow up—without trying to diagnose or manage everything yourself.

Line care isn’t just about responding when someone becomes unwell. It’s also about creating a healthier and safer workplace for everyone.

In this episode, Koko, an occupational health physician working in Japan, explains where the occupational health physician — or OHP — fits within Japan’s workplace health and safety system.

You’ll learn how the roles of the treating doctor, OHP, manager, and HR differ, and how each brings a different perspective when health and work intersect.

The OHP does not provide an employee’s diagnosis or treatment. Instead, occupational health connects medical information with the actual job and workplace, helping companies make practical decisions that protect employees’ health and safety.