Today's post comes from guest writer 'M.A.', a new employee, on his impressions of Japanese working hours and the stereotypes surrounding them.
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[This post is an essay submission by a guest writer in the company, ‘Z.A.']

I had a get-away trip with my high school friends (who are now living in Japan) to Nikko, among them are some who have educational backgrounds or working experiences in Europe or the United States.
It was the very first time for most of us to have the chance to have a decent talk with each other since we graduated. As a person who has been staying in Japan for over 6 years, and has no working experience anywhere other than Japan, I am curious about how different the Western corporation culture can be, and how the Japanese one is observed or thought by people outside Japan.

Japan is known for its seniority culture, where levels of respect are dependent on seniority (age, experience, etc.), and this appears in the language of workplace culture as well.

An obvious question posed by non-Japanese-speakers when thinking about a job in Japan: what about speaking the language? No matter what kind of job you are looking for, Japanese will become necessary at some point in your career.