11-12 hrs is normal hours by Japanese standards. My wife used to work for a trading house that had a dormitory at the office to make it easier to sustain a str

11-12 hrs is normal hours by Japanese standards. My wife used to work for a trading house that had a dormitory at the office to make it easier to sustain a stretch of 18-hour days. On the limited upside, the wages are not all there is to working for a Japanese megacorp. In addition to the thick wad of non-taxable allowances, there are also non-monetary benefits. As patio11 notes [1], “Most people want to become wealthy so they can consume social status. Japanese employers believe this is inefficient, and simply award social status directly.” [1] http://www.kalzumeus.com/2014/11/07/doing-business-in-japan/ http://www.kalzumeus.com/2014/11/07/doing-business-in-japan/