Working in Corona Evil: Hearing Itochu Corporation Chairman Okafuji-July 17 18:45

In principle, overtime work after 8:00 pm is prohibited, while extra allowance is provided for early morning work from 5 am to 9 am. The leading trading company, ITOCHU, was the first to introduce the "morning shift" in the way employees work. Itochu, while many companies are working to reassess their work style due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, what kind of work style are you aiming for? We asked Chairman Masahiro Okafuji. (Yousuke Ikegawa, Reporter, Economic Department)

Work-style advanced company ITOCHU

ITOCHU, which has more than 4,300 employees, is one of the companies that has been attracting attention in work style reform. The most distinctive feature is the "morning work" that started in 2013. It was introduced to improve productivity by eliminating long night overtime, which has been synonymous with trading companies.

ITOCHU morning work

▽8 pm-10 pm "Prohibition of overtime work principle" 10 pm-5:00 am the next day "Prohibition of overtime"

▽5 am-9 am "Extra allowance" Come to work by 8 am Free snacks provided

Today, fewer than 5% of employees work overtime after 8 pm, while nearly half of those who work before 8 am work. Overall overtime hours have also been reduced by about 10%.

In addition, we are launching a series of innovative initiatives related to work styles, such as "the drinking party is the first party only, until 10 pm", "dissuit day", and "supporting a balance between cancer and work."

Itochu, what kind of work style did you do after receiving the emergency declaration?

Chairman Okafuji
"I said that I wouldn't come to the company anyway, such as working from home. I told my employees to take good care of their lives. I told them that if they had a life, they could do their work anytime."

First, we worked from home to protect the lives of our employees. About 10% of employees came to work during the declaration period. It is said that the headquarters building in Aoyama, Tokyo, where 4,000 people normally work, had quietly quieted down.

One email from an employee

However, Mr. Okato says that he also needs a work style that is not one-sided work.

This is because we believe that we must not forget the basics of being an employee of a trading company, "going to customers and standing on the same line of sight." One email from an employee helped me to think that way.

Chairman Okafuji
"A message or email came in to me. I'm an employee of a female career track, but when I work from home, the ladies wear manufacturer I am in charge of is I went out to the department store and was worried that I had to go around all the time. At that time, a female staff member was wearing a mask in front of a mirror and was sloppy. I was desperately studying how I could convey a smile to the employee, and the employee was so impressed that he stood in the sales floor for a day and bought some clothes on his way home. I think it's a merchant's attitude."

On-site issues cannot be understood unless you go to the site. Even if you continue to work from home, you must not forget the basics of work as an employee of a trading company.

Chairman Okafuji
"(In the company), people in the department that are closely related to people's daily lives must do the same from the perspective of customers such as convenience stores or those who have stores in department stores. Too much safety for themselves. I was wondering what it is like to be a merchant as a priority, so after the declaration was lifted, I would basically go to work for those departments in the future.

Of course, not everyone was asked to come to work uniformly. Employees who have small children or elderly people who need nursing care continue to work from home, and responded carefully to each employee's circumstances.

We also thoroughly implemented in-house infection prevention measures. For example, we are dividing the entrance of the company and changing the layout of the cafeteria so that it is not crowded.

What does With Corona do?

Following the spread of the new coronavirus infection, there is a growing movement among Japanese companies to introduce new ways of working.

From April of next year, Hitachi will telework 2-3 days a week out of approximately 33,000 employees in Japan, excluding those who work at the manufacturing site, to reduce the number of employees who come to work by half.

Calbee, a major confectionery maker, decided that about 800 people working in the office would in principle be teleworked, and would stop working alone if the company determined that it would not interfere with their work.

Then, what kind of work style will ITOCHU have been actively pursuing for work style reform even before Corona?

Chairman Okafuji
"When the number of infected people increases, we will not limit the number of employees who come to work, so we will make decisions based on the situation. Instead of choosing between working at home and going to work, it is not up to the individual or department. I am instructing you to respond individually according to the response.Working style reform is not a fun thing to do.How to improve efficiency and balance with home? That's what it is.''

In fact, in response to the current spread of infections nationwide, ITOCHU decided to increase the number of employees working from home again from July 20th, and reduce the proportion of employees who go to work to about 50%.

-Are you at home or going to work?-The need for "worktaking inventory"

I think that many people have experienced working from home for the first time in Corona. Some people may have thought, "Is it necessary to go to the office by being swayed by a crowded train every day?" or "What is the "result" of my work?"

I also worked from home during the period of the emergency declaration. I also experienced online interviews, and it was discovered that there were less restrictions on time and distance compared to face-to-face meetings, so that people could feel free to respond.

On the other hand, I think that the basic work of a reporter is to visit the scene and talk directly with the other person. By doing so, a relationship of trust will be created, and it will lead to extracting information that is close to the truth from the person who sometimes shuts his mouth tightly.

For me, "Coronal Evil" is just confusing. Opportunities for contacting interviewees have drastically decreased, and press conferences are almost online. I couldn't even start and stop with the other person online in order to bring out the truth, so I was frustrated.

However, I have noticed one thing. That is the need for "worktaking inventory". You can research and organize information, and compile it into manuscripts at home, but in order to obtain important information, you must actually visit the site and meet people. In the same way, various jobs should have "things that can be done at home" and "things that cannot be replaced at home".

At this opportunity when work styles are about to change, I will review the contents of each work one by one, sort out what I can and cannot do at home, and try to assemble my own work style.

Beyond that trial and error, I want to find my new way of working.

Yosuke Ikegawa, Reporter, Ministry of Economics
Joined in 2002
After working at Sendai station, Yamagata station, etc.,
now covering trade and employment