It is these people who are now increasingly exploited; the shock absorbers of small, nominally independent companies are being replaced by the shock absorbers of poorly paid, overworked temporary staff. Even worse practices exist. Tales circulate of burakku kigyō (“black companies”), firms that pretend to offer permanent positions but have no intention of actually doing so. These firms take in young people, but then subject them to such demanding and grueling work that the young people leave, allowing them to be replaced by new cohorts of workers at entry-level pay.
