The infrastructure issues of Japan have affected the country significantly. Some of these issues include education, public transportation, roads, and various services. The first issue the company needs to know about will be the availability of education in Japan. According to Semeuls 2017, “In many countries, the United States included, students’ economic backgrounds often determine the quality of the education they receive.” (Semuels, 2017). This means that based on the amount of income each family makes, depends on the value of education received. This is huge because compared to the United States, people will not have the same opportunity at a good education because of their economic background. In Japan, this does not exist, but the Japanese believe that education is very value; if a Japanese student is being educated, they will graduate. Japan strongly believes in equality between students. Compared to the United States, school is mandatory but not really enforced, allowing for a higher dropout rate.
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), “a group of 35 wealthy countries, Japan ranks highly among its peers in providing its rich and poor students with equal educational opportunities.” The OECD estimates that in Japan only about 9% of the variation in student performance is explained by students’ socioeconomic backgrounds. The OECD average is 14%, and in the United States, it’s 17%.” Because there are poor areas in Japan, it does not mean the education of students has to suffer.
Did you know that Japanese people have a long-life expectancy? Well you wonder why then? This is because their healthcare system is one of the best. Nearly 100% of its population is healthcare insured and compared to the U.S. ER visit are over half as cheap as an ER visit here would be. According to AHA and TransferWise japan has over 53,000 pharmacies and 8,500 hospitals in the country they have very reliable healthcare sources. Compared to the U.S., Japan has roughly 3,000 more hospitals and under 10,000 less pharmacies, but they have more pharmacies than convenience stores. Also, most citizens only pay about 30% of their medical expenses and prefer cash payments over card payments.
How will our employee get around in Japan? Japan offers public transportation such as trains and buses, whereas some places in the US do not but most big cities do. Japan has three different types of public transportation methods. Trains, Subway, and the bus are means of public transportation. There are three different types of trains you can take: you have the shinkansen, which is the famous bullet train that provides comfort and speed, JR trains, which is the formal national railway company, and Private lines, which are numerous and provide better service than the JR. All of Japan has the underground line for the subway and provide buses except for in major cities like Tokyo. Japan also prides their public transit system for punctuality and efficiency. They also recommend getting a pay card (bus pass) for longer stays in Japan. (Japan Experience 2015)
According to Vidal owning a car in japan is a little more difficult than here in the US. In japan you must pass some inspection every two years and if you have a car 10 year or older you must pay extra taxes on them. Here in the US car inspections are simply dying out. When purchasing a car in japan you must prove that you can park a car and that you have a parking spot or parking garage. If you do not have any proof of this, you not be getting your license plate. Providing proof of parking is something the US does not do, and in japan you will pay anywhere from $80 to $1000 in parking depending on where you are located. Whereas here in the US we don’t have to prove any of that to purchase a car. (Vidal. 2016)
According to the US Embassy you would first need to obtain an International Drivers licenses but staying in Japan over 90 days would require you to obtain an Japan license. If you do not obtain proper licensing you can be fined, taken to jail and even deported.
Gas prices in Japan are about $1.50 more than the average place in the US according to CNN. In japan people spend way more money on gas in the latter part of the year rather than the mid-year. Under Japanese law every car owner must have CALI, Compulsory Automobile Liability Insurance. This is like the US now requiring citizens to have at least liability car insurance or they will be fined if caught without it.
Driving in Japan is very complicated and expensive. Traffic moves on the left side of the road. Compared to here we drive on the right side of the road. Highway tolls are high and city traffic is almost always very congested. A 20-mile trip in the Tokyo area may take up to two hours. In mountainous areas, roads are often closed during the winter, and cars should be equipped with tire chains. Roads in Japan are very narrow than those in the US. Most short-term visitors choose not to drive in Japan. Other than a few exceptions, turning on red lights is generally not permitted.
Japan has a national zero tolerance policy on drinking and driving, and drivers stopped for driving under the influence will have their licenses confiscated. If you’re found guilty of drinking and driving, reckless driving you can be subjected to up to 15 years in prison. (Country Reports)
Having a telephone service in Japan works on most if not all up-to-date smartphone. These phones must be compatible with the services that are offered in the country. If it so happens to be that this does not work out for you there are phone renting companies in japan. These companies charge anywhere from $1.50 (U.S.) to $20 (U.S.) a day and they do offer long term plans like here in the US. (Japan-Guide)
According to the Japan Times public broadcasting had established a law in 2016 stating that they will be regulated when it comes to political aspects of what is broadcasted. Here in the US politics is all you see on tv and social media now a day. (Japan Time) HBO commonly known station in the US just recently been able to be broadcasted in Japan staring this year through Amazon Prime. (Schilling.2018)
Newspapers in Japan are said to be parallel to the US. Japan has five international papers that circulate the country. But they have plenty of other papers. Japan is very high literacy rate so reading the paper is very common there more so than here in the US. Finding news available in English is more common than usual because there they have English language printing services. (Press Reference)
In Japan they have 24-hour services for police and fire protection just the same as the US. They offer English speaking operators 24 hours a day as well toll free. The only difference in emergency services in japan is that thy have two separate numbers to call, whereas in the US we only us one number to call for three serves needed. In japan you would dial 110 for police, accidents and crimes, and dial 119 for fire, rescue, and ambulance. According to Nation Master Japan is Ranked number 6 on the crime rate list compared to the US being ranked number 1. With this number compared going to Japan you will have a lower crime rate than having now in the US. (Nation Master)
Shopping in Japan in just like shopping here in the US. They have the 24-hour convenience store, supermarkets, and department stores. Finding similar items should not be a hard task. The only difficulty find items would be the language barrier. In some supermarkets you will find a section with American items on it, so you will have some taste of home while in another country. Department store are just like ours here when it comes to expenses on items being high priced like in some areas here. The difference in our department store compared to there is all of theirs are called the basement floor because all of them are on the basement floor of the shopping area.
