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Article

14 May 2025

Author:
by Duc Trung and Minh Nga, VNExpress International (Vietnam)

Exploitation, wage arrears, improper job assignment: Vietnamese workers' woes in Japan

See all tags Allegations

Many Vietnamese workers in Japan with the high-skilled "Gijinkoku" visa complain about wage arrears and being assigned to jobs outside their area of expertise, without clear support mechanism.

In December last year dozens of them gathered at the Nekuseru employment agency headquarters in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, to demand unpaid wages for September and October, according to Yonhap.

On learning about the situation, Phan Tien Hoang, first secretary and head of labor management at the Vietnamese embassy in Tokyo, traveled to Chiba to meet with the affected workers, representatives of Nekuseru, the recruiting company, and Toyota City officials.

Hoang said 150 Vietnamese workers are owed wages by Nekuseru.

The embassy has since worked with the Toyota Labor Standards Inspection Office to resolve the issue.

According to NHK, the total unpaid amount is estimated at 48 million yen (US$330,000).

The workers also allege that the company requires them to perform tasks not required by their visa.

The company has run into financial trouble and ceased operations, leaving many workers without jobs, compensation or support…

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