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Practice Listening: Highlight Correct Summary ID: #34838 Medium Dentsu

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Transcript:

Inside Japan's corporations, the culture emphasizes the success of a company as a whole to be more important than any single individual, which might explain why one study found that 63% of Japanese felt guilty for taking paid leave. But perhaps more concerning is this: Long work hours don't necessarily mean high productivity. In fact, Japan has the lowest productivity amongst the G7 nations. Earlier I mentioned the term karoshi: it means death by overwork. It's legally recognized by the government and usually is marked by a heart attack, stroke or suicide due to stress. There's hundreds of cases of karoshi reported annually, although some argue these cases are under-reported and that the real number could exceed that by up to 10 times. An employee of the advertising firm Dentsu jumped to her death in 2015. The cause was said to have been depression caused by overwork. The case generated widespread attention and renewed calls to change the long working hours and illegal unpaid overtime highly common in Japan. The firm was fined for violating labor standards because she was reportedly forced to work more than 100 hours of overtime per month. The company's CEO even resigned over the controversy. After the death, Dentsu made some changes within the company.

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Japanese companies emphasize the importance of the success of a team as a whole, so many employees in Japan work overtime. This, however, decreases their productivity, and even results in many deaths caused by overwork each year. 63% of Japanese feel guilty to take a paid vacation, so they often choose not to take the vacation, and instead work overtime. An employee in the firm Dentsu unfortunately died when overworking, before the company’s CEO resigned because of guilt about her death. The advertising firm Dentsu has been reported to force its employees to work overtime without any pay, which resulted in the death of one of its staff. The company’s CEO then came up with new policies to turn off the lights in the office at 10pm every night. Although long hours don’t necessarily mean high productivity, Japanese companies still encourage their employees to work overtime. Thus, people often get a higher pay in Japan, and governments provide great welfare to make sure they can work in a healthy condition.

Result:

A.I. Explanation:

Option 1: "Japanese companies emphasize the importance of the success of a team as a whole, so many employees in Japan work overtime. This, however, decreases their productivity, and even results in many deaths caused by overwork each year."
Explanation: This option accurately captures the main idea of the text, which discusses the cultural emphasis on collective success in Japanese corporations leading to excessive overtime work. It highlights the negative consequences of this culture, including decreased productivity and deaths from overwork, aligning with the thesis that long hours do not equate to high productivity.
Option 2: "63% of Japanese feel guilty to take a paid vacation, so they often choose not to take the vacation, and instead work overtime. An employee in the firm Dentsu unfortunately died when overworking, before the company’s CEO resigned because of guilt about her death."
Explanation: While this option mentions the guilt felt by Japanese employees regarding taking leave, it misrepresents the overall theme of the text. The focus is not solely on vacation guilt or the CEO's resignation due to guilt, but rather on the broader issue of overwork and its consequences, including the phenomenon of karoshi. Additionally, it implies a direct cause-and-effect relationship that is not explicitly stated in the text.
Option 3: "The advertising firm Dentsu has been reported to force its employees to work overtime without any pay, which resulted in the death of one of its staff. The company’s CEO then came up with new policies to turn off the lights in the office at 10pm every night."
Explanation: This option incorrectly states that Dentsu forced employees to work overtime without pay, which is not explicitly mentioned in the text. The text discusses illegal unpaid overtime but does not specify that it was enforced without pay. Furthermore, while it mentions the policy change regarding office lights, it fails to address the broader cultural context of overwork and its implications on productivity and health.
Option 4: "Although long hours don’t necessarily mean high productivity, Japanese companies still encourage their employees to work overtime. Thus, people often get a higher pay in Japan, and governments provide great welfare to make sure they can work in a healthy condition."
Explanation: This option misrepresents the text by suggesting that working overtime leads to higher pay and that the government provides great welfare for healthy working conditions. The text emphasizes that long hours do not correlate with high productivity and highlights the negative outcomes of overwork, such as karoshi, rather than suggesting that overtime is beneficial or compensated well.

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