Misconception: Holding a "Construction Site Manager" Title Does Not Allow Individuals with an "Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services" Status of Residence to Perform Manual Site Work
AKIRA YAMAMOTO.AKIRARecently, we received an inquiry asking, "Can an employee with the 'Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services' status of residence perform manual on-site work if their title is 'Site Manager'?"
In the construction industry, the scope of work permitted under the "Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services" status of residence is strictly limited to intellectual duties—such as planning, management, analysis, and design—that utilize specialized knowledge or an academic background. Therefore, simply assigning someone the title of "Site Manager" as a pretext to have them perform manual labor on-site is not permitted.
Does this mean someone with this status of residence cannot become a site manager at all? Not at all. For instance, they can absolutely take on the role if their duties involve utilizing their specialized knowledge to plan, manage, and support operations, rather than engaging in the physical, manual labor itself. Immigration authorities evaluate applications based on actual, concrete daily duties, not merely by job titles or designations.
Additionally, while a monthly salary system is the standard basis for employment, the construction industry sometimes utilizes a daily wage system. However, employing someone under the "Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services" status on a daily wage basis carries significant risks.
A daily wage system is a pay structure based on the specific days an individual works on-site. Because this status of residence is reserved for intellectual work requiring specialized knowledge or academic backgrounds, employers must be able to clearly justify why such a professional is being paid on a daily basis instead of a standard monthly salary. If you cannot provide a legitimate, logical explanation, immigration authorities may suspect the employee is engaging in activities outside the scope of their permitted status. Consequently, there is a high probability that their next status renewal will be denied.
Furthermore, hiring companies should exercise extreme caution: permitting unauthorized manual labor may expose the business to charges of "Illegal Employment Facilitation" (Fuhō Shūrō Jochō Zai). A conviction or violation of this nature would make it extremely difficult for your company to employ foreign nationals in the future.
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