Roger Ong“Our motto is ‘Creating a society where everyone can work freely as themselves.’ It thus hints that there is a problem where some are not free to do so.”
That was the introduction given by Hisashi Fukuzawa from Minority Solution Corporation. Minority Solution is a Japanese social enterprise that solves problems faced at the workplace by minorities. These minorities could be LGBT, single parents, disabled, facing poverty etc. Minority Solution is also certified by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus as a Social Business Company.
And Fukuzawa’s introduction is a stark reminder of the gap between a workplace where everyone is free to express themselves, and the current state of lack of understanding.
Minority Solution is improving workplaces for minorities
Minority Solution approaches workplace problems with a two-prong method, through both minorities themselves and businesses.
On one hand, it provides work training and opportunities for minorities. By focusing on each individuals’ strengths and capability, Minority Solution provide support for job hunting in Japan. It also hires through its Contact Center, which provides a communication outsourcing service for businesses.
On the other hand, beyond offering outsourcing services, Minority Solution offers a consulting service surrounding human resource. It is a major player in Fukuoka, advising businesses on creating diversity and inclusion in the workplace. This includes identifying what stage each business is at and their next steps, and even business risks of a non-diverse workplace.
Discovering the key obstacle in a Japanese workplace: “Common Sense”
The Japanese workplace is famous and infamous on the internet, with their seemingly strict structure and rules. While there are many pros and cons that can be argued, one fact is clear: a code of conduct not often talked about exists.
Also strongly instilled in the Japanese society, this code of conduct determines power structure and the norm in the workplace. For example, when speaking to seniority, a polite form of Japanese is used by the more junior staff. Ensuring one does not cause trouble for another illustration of the hidden rules. Therefore, a sense of “what is normal, what is not normal” begins to arise, often carelessly grouped as “common sense”. (Perhaps this can be said of all communities anywhere.)
A major problem arises when they start comparing their minority counterparts’ situations with this “common sense”. A transgender gets compared with a normal straight person. A single mother gets compared with a normal family. An ex-convict gets compared with other convicts. While there are no rights or wrongs to argue here, assumptions are inevitably formed.
“It is difficult for minorities to work freely as themselves,” Fukuzawa commented, “Take for example for the LGBT group. 44% of lesbians, gays and bisexuals feel that they do not feel safe in their work environment. On the other hand, 70% of transgender persons do not. And out of those 70%, 60% stated the work environment a problem. Some reasons behind this include lack of privacy, company policies and gossiping among colleagues.”
The numbers are startling. In surveys conducted by various organizations, it is estimated that 8% of the Japanese population identify as LGBT. That is about 1 in every 13 persons. The number of LGBT who do not find their workplace safe is a dire concern. And we have yet to address the numbers for other minorities.
Fukuzawa shared, “It is really a waste to see someone with excellence in a certain field finding great fit in a job, only to have to quit not of their own causing. LGBT, and minorities for that matter, deserve to have a work environment they feel safe to work in.”
Problems of a piece of paper called Resume
One of the major obstacles LGBT faces in Japan while finding a job is the resume. The Japanese resume has a standardized format, regardless of industry or role. This facilitates the extraction of information. One of the key information required, however, is stating gender.
“When job seekers fill in the resume, they fill in their names and attach their photos,” Fukuzawa shared. “And names can often be revealing on a gender binary. However, when an LGBT fills the resume together with gender identification, what should they fill in? Interviewers might get confused too, when the name, gender and photo do not match as they expected.”
Considering how embedded the concept of “normal” is in Japan, it puts minorities, especially LGBT, at risk from just a piece of paper. Assumptions and bias set in before the actual interview happens. And even at interviews, trust is also at risk, should the person look different from the resume photo or with a mismatched name. Really brings us to consider, is “Gender” still a required part of the resume?
Call Center is not inclusive, Contact Center is
Minority Solution chooses the term Contact Center purposefully. To many of us, the image that comes from call centers is someone on the other end of service line answering our problems.
“Even though the call is not face to face, service operators still face problems of their own. For example, when transgenders share their names, customers are confused when the names are voice who not match (eg “female” name vs a “male” voice). Also, if one is not able to speak due to a disability, does that mean the call center work is out for them?”
Therefore, one of the things Minority Solution does is to diversify the work definitions to include responsibilities like chat (text) messaging, emails and data entry. It’s not looking at what their staff cannot do, but simply finding an alternative where they can. It might seem obvious when spelled out, but it takes one with an inclusive approach to create accessible jobs.
Needless to say, the members of the Contact Center team felt at ease working with one another. There is enablement, respect and freedom.
Including diversity and inclusion in the Japanese workplace
It’s not to say that Japanese companies are not embracing diversity in the workplace however. Minority Solution is organizing seminars to educate interested companies on the topic. This includes understanding the differences between diversity and inclusion, and business and legal risks of not having a diverse workforce. The turn out at these seminars till now has been full. Attendees actively approach the speakers to explore how they can improve their own workplaces.
Fukuzawa shared, “Part of what Minority Solution does is consult companies that are interested in relooking at their policies, hiring process etc to include diversity. What we found was that different companies were at different stages. The needs of one that is starting to look at diversity is very much different from one that is setting up respective facilities. Therefore we have a 6-step system to advise businesses accordingly.”
It is also through understanding everyone’s needs that Minority Solution realised a need for a third party hotline outside the workplace for LGBT. Simply having a support within the organization wasn’t enough to create a channel that LGBT were comfortable in confiding in. Minority Solution thus tied down with Rainbow Knots to provide the Rainbow Call, a hotline that acts as one of the support for LGBT.
Becoming aware of minority issues as the next step
Becoming aware of the issues faced by minorities can impact the Japanese workplace immensely in a positive direction.
Compared to countries like Germany or England, Japan can be said to be still at the beginnings of truly understanding the issues surrounding minorities. As such, the only reference to any action is mistakenly “common sense”, regardless of good intentions.
For example, with a group thinking in mind, the manager might think it normal to announce to the colleagues about an LGBT staff who has just joined the company. The intention is most likely to garner support and understanding from them. But coming out is a personal decision, and it should be respected as so. Therefore, there’s still more work to be done to spread such understanding in the workplace. And unless there are very active groups spreading awareness matched with government support, many Japanese will not be in touch with such matters.
As said, government support is important too. Staying true to the welcoming spirit of Fukuoka, the mayor of Fukuoka, Soichiro Takashima, is pushing for diversity in the city. Starting with LGBT, Takashima wants to create a city that will welcome all, regardless of nationality, age, sexual orientation or disability. The city’s fortnightly newspaper even dedicated a few pages to promote diversity and inclusion for LGBT citizens.
Minority Solution already has a new definition of “common sense”
As we mentioned in the beginning, Minority Solution is a certified Social Business Company. To be considered a social business, it must fulfil seven principles, including an objective to overcome a social problem, and financial stability. The final principle they must fulfil is “Do it with joy.”
When asked how Minority Solution does it “with joy”, Fukuzawa took a little moment of silence. It was like asking why the sky is blue. Diversity and inclusion were such natural ways for Minority Solution, that asking why it brings happiness to the workplace was not required. It just makes sense that it brings joy to its staff.
The leader of the Contact Center revealed how this true “common sense” works: “Everyone who works at the Contact Center is comfortable and open with one another, without feeling they need to be someone else. We can work freely as ourselves.”
Sure, there is still work to be done. But Fukuzawa believes in the future: “When I think about what we can pass on to the next generation, we should improve the present. And that is what Minority Solution can do.”
[Website] Minority Solution Homepage[Website] Ally Fukuoka
