There are many reasons why foreign workers in Japan choose to work for a haken gaisha (派遣会社, dispatch company). These companies make it easier to find a job in Japan, especially for those without fluent Japanese or a local network. It might even make your Japanese resume look better. Working as a haken rodosha (派遣労働者, dispatch worker) can also offer more flexibility and freedom to explore different industries — something that’s harder to do in traditional full-time roles.
That said, dispatch work has its drawbacks. Employment can be unstable, with limited job security and few opportunities for advancement. Still, many foreigners — especially English teachers, IT professionals and office staff — find the system appealing.
So what rights and benefits can a haken worker expect in Japan? And how can you advocate for yourself while working under a haken contract?
Pros of Working at a Dispatch Company
Legal Protections for Haken Workers
How to Make Haken Work for You
What to Do If You’re Treated Unfairly
What Is The Haken System?
The haken system in Japan is similar to temp staffing in other countries. Haken workers are employed by a dispatch company but are assigned to work at separate client companies for limited periods. Here’s how a haken contract compares to other common employment types in Japan:
- Seishain (正社員, regular employee): Full-time, permanent staff hired directly by the company. Seishain enjoy the most stable working conditions and receive benefits like paid vacation, health insurance (kenko hoken), pension (kosei nenkin), and unemployment insurance (koyo hoken).
- Keiyaku shain (契約社員, contract employee): Hired directly by a company for a fixed term. They usually receive paid leave and social insurance, but may not be fully covered by unemployment insurance.
- Haken contracts are signed with the dispatch agency, not the client company. Workers typically take on short-term assignments across multiple workplaces. While conditions vary, most are eligible for social insurance (shakai hoken).
The haken system is governed by Japan’s Worker Dispatch Law (**Rodosha Haken Ho, 労働者派遣法)**, which regulates the dispatch industry and protects workers.
Haken roles also create a dual employment structure — dispatch companies manage contracts and payroll, while client companies supervise day-to-day work. This can lead to confusion over who is responsible if problems arise, such as harassment or contract disputes.
Industries that rely on dispatch workers include IT, manufacturing, admin support and English teaching. Contracts usually last between one and twelve months, and foreigners with the right visa or skills are often recruited through this system.
Pros of Working at a Dispatch Company
Like any type of employment in Japan, haken work comes with trade-offs. Some advantages include flexibility, easier access to jobs and the freedom to explore other work. Here are some pros to working for a dispatch company:
Higher Hourly Wages
One of the biggest draws of haken work is that hourly pay is often higher than what full-time or contract employees earn, particularly in fields like IT, customer service, and English education.
Flexibility
Shorter employment contracts allow workers to change jobs more easily, take breaks between assignments, or try out different industries. This makes it easier to balance work with personal goals like travel, language study or creative projects.
Easier Access to Jobs
Landing a full-time role in Japan can be difficult, especially if you don’t speak Japanese fluently or don’t yet have relevant experience. Dispatch companies help connect workers to roles they might not be able to get through direct hiring.
Less Pressure Than Full-Time Roles
Full-time employment in Japan often involves overtime, company transfers, and strict social expectations. Dispatch workers are generally not subject to these pressures, which can make the work environment more manageable.
Visa and Language Support
Some dispatch companies sponsor work visas and provide English-speaking support. They may also act as go-betweens during contract negotiations or workplace conflicts, and some even offer career counseling to help you plan your next steps.
The Dark Side of Haken
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- External Link
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7 Comments
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Garthgoyle
Should you work for a haken company scam?
No, you shouldn't. They will scam you. ALL of them.
Can you work directly for a company and not haken?
Also no. At least not as a newly immigrant. Unless you've been in Japan for a while, of course, and even then.
The haken system should be illegal. But this is Japan and things almost never change in Japan, except prices going up (and never down).
girl_in_tokyo
It's a system that purposefully keeps the workforce fluid, so that companies can hire and fire as needed. There is zero job security, and you're not going to get the same kind of training and support that regular workers get.
As such, your on the job learning and training will be minimal, which means your skills and knowledge won't proceed at the same pace as regular workers, making you under-skilled for the amount of time worked, thus less qualified and thus more difficult as time goes by for you to find a more permanent, better-paying position elsewhere.
In addition, you won't receive pay raises, added vacation days, bonuses, or other perks that regular workers get, and there is nothing you can do about it. It is perfectly legal for companies to discriminate against their haken staff and underpay them as they see fit.
Unions are there to fight for you, but their wins are few and far between, as companies are well-versed in drawing out legal disputes far past the time your contract is terminated. And while it's not legal to fire someone for joining a union, companies are well able to fire you for "other" reasons, so it is not that hard for them to find a way to rid themselves of employees they see as "difficult". In addition, hakken employees often aren't overly invested in fighting for their labor rights, as most people aren't invested in the job itself and can't be bothered to join the union in the first place.
Finally, if there is a dispute with your company, you can fully expect your contract to not be renewed. For example, imagine asking for some days off to have surgery, and your company refusing on the grounds that you have no right to further holidays. You point out that it's within the law to provide time off for health-related reasons, and they are forced to oblige. At the end of that contract, you are let go for being a trouble maker.
Never forget: as a haken employee, you are easily replaceable and no one will miss you when you're gone.
grund
The IT companies I worked for used haken workers because they could pay them less than full time employees and could fire them as needed. The haken workers did the same work as regular employees but for less pay. The pay doesn't rise with experience and you get no bonuses, so no, haken is definitely not something to recommend.
DanteKH
Haken or contract work in Japan are the worst in the world. Contractors have absolutely ZERO protection here, they never receive pay raise, no bonuses, only 10 days of holidays on the 1st year, even if you have 15+ year experience, when you start a new contract everything resets;
On top of that, contractors are at the mercy and abuse of their employers, they are treated much worst than the permanent staff, they are seen as first line of expandables, etc.
So defenetly a hard No for Japan contract works.
wallace
Some people like gig work, and it suits their lifestyles. It's not all bad for everyone. For many, it's a stopgap until they find something better.
Gaijinjland
Haken is full time work. Freelance is a different type of contract. If you absolutely need a job, these services are indispensable. Only problem is staffing companies operate on high volume, high margin Haken. They charge their clients as much as possible and pay their working staff as little as they can get away with. Super profitable if you’re on the other end.
isabelle
Most of the above information is false.
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1) Contractors/haken are protected by employment law, just like regular workers (seishain). Unlike seishain they are on fixed term contracts -- sometimes as short as 3 months -- but if both sides are happy this can be, and often is, extended.
2) They can get pay raises (but not, as far as I'm aware, bonuses), and the haken company will actively negotiate for this: after all, it's in their best interests to as then their cut will rise. It's true that contractors' pay may well be less than a seishain, but the responsibility and overtime requirements are generally less (depends on the company).
3) Holidays depend on the contract but I've certainly heard of people receiving 10 days after the first six months (not 1 year), and this number going up yearly. I know haken workers that receive 20 days holiday (perhaps that's the maximum; I don't know).
4) Everything doesn't "reset" on a new contract: things like holidays and pay raises carry over. (Unless you're talking about a new contract with a different company, in which case it will reset, but that's true for regular workers too.)
...
Being a contract/haken worker doesn't suit everyone, as it may make it harder to get things like a home loan, but it can suit some people depending on their situation.