Conflict Management and Negotiation, Case 8 Sick

Conflict Management and Negotiation, Case 8 Sick Leave

Kelly, Mark and Suzanne -- two Canadians and a British citizens, respectively -- are working as Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) within the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) in Soto, Japan. In an effort to improve the English education standards used in Japanese schools, the national government designed the JET program to facilitate the exchange of English teachers from international locales. Government agencies and other educational experts believed that the process of exchanging teachers would serve to further the growing commitment to internalization on the municipal level, emphasizing the value of English-language competency for Japanese citizens and government workers. In order to properly address the instance of workplace issues or complaints from its ALTs, the JET program allowed for a process of resolution mediated by the Conference of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Although the CLAIR program was intended to be proactive in nature, its standards were only applicable if the host institution remained unable to resolve the conflict through independent means. Case study 8 thus examines the occurrence of several conflicts between Japanese authorities and its contingent of foreign workers teaching English as ALTs.

Although the dilemma faced by Kelly and her fellow ALTs would appear to be a fairly standard case of supervisor overreach in Western culture -- with a third-party mediator becoming involved to delineate the exact boundaries of a superior's authority over his or her subordinates -- the cross-cultural implications of this case warrant a closer examination. In Canada, America or England, workers ascribe tremendous value to their sick or personal days, viewing this system as an exercise in their fundamental sense of independence, but in Japanese culture the situation is reversed. Rather than search for ways to take time off of work, the typical Japanese worker willingly sacrifices sick days and Saturdays as an extension of the culture's prioritization of loyalty and obedience. This cultural divide is informative in explaining Mr. Higashi's unwillingness to believe the story put forth by his three subordinates, which consists of all three workers falling ill with the flu simultaneously, because his Japanese upbringing and heritage simply do not reconcile with what he perceives to be disloyal actions to defraud the JET program in the form of compensation for unwarranted sick days. Furthermore, the patriarchal attitude which is still dominant in Japanese society leaves Mr. Higashi to fully expect that his mandates will be followed, and when the ALTs under his supervision (two of which are women) fail to show up for work on the same day, his suspicion and subsequent assessment of punitive action is based as much on their gender as on their status as foreigners. Finally, Kelly must consider the concept of face (honor) as it exists in Japanese culture, because although bypassing a superior to lodge a complaint is accepted practice in Western workplaces, seeking redress with CLAIR in this scenario would represent a breach of etiquette, humiliating Mr. Higashi on a level that the non-Japanese could never begin to fathom.

Thus the simmering conflict holds a different level of significance for both Kelly and Mr. Higashi, because while she is simply attempting to secure her rightfully utilized and contractually obligated paid sick days during a temporary visit to Japan, he will likely remain in the same professional capacity for the rest of his career. When this aspect of the conflict is fully considered, it becomes clear that Kelly's intent to notify CLAIR in regards to her workplace grievances may pose unintended consequences for a boss who, for all intents and purposes, strived to treat Kelly with respect and dignity during her time working as an ALT in the JET program. It would be advisable, then, for Kelly to reconsider her position on this matter, remembering that it was her choice to visit and work in Japan, and honoring her commitment to assimilate herself into that nation's culture without expecting special treatment. Although the contract signed by the ALTs does provide for paid sick days, it is an implicit expectation in Japanese culture that employees will work diligently to avoid using these benefits unnecessarily in an act of truancy that costs the JET program valuable funds. Kelly did not take advantage of the situation, as she was legitimately ill with the flu, but it would appear that her fellow ALTs (who were unable to produce doctor's notes verifying their absence) did just that.