Japanese convenience store allows use of initials on name tags to prevent harassment by customers

Lawson makes move to protect employee’s privacy, also changes policy regarding head coverings.

Japanese convenience store chain Lawson has announced a change to its uniforms. No, they’re not getting rid of their traditional blue-and-white stripes. Instead, they’re making changes to their employee name tags, as part of efforts to create a working environment with a greater sense of security for store staff.

Until now, Lawson employee name tags have displayed the wearer’s family name, written in Japanese phonetic text.

▼ A Lawson name tag displaying the family name “Tanaka” (たなか)

However, following incidences of malicious customer complaints, Lawson is looking for ways to protect workers’ privacy and shield them from potential verbal abuse, and as part of those efforts will now allow employees who so wish to wear name tags with Latin alphabet letters of their choice, such as their initials or an abbreviation of their name, instead.

▼ A new Lawson name tag, displaying “TK” as an abbreviation of “Tanaka”

In addition, the new name tags will also display the employee’s position/rank. In the above example, the tag specifies that the wearer is a “crew” (クルー) member, referring to the base rung of customer service employees.

Lawson’s revised name tag policy comes after fellow convenience store chain Family Mart made the decision last month to allow store workers to use names other than their real one on their name tags.

Lawson also announced that it has revised its employee dress code and will now allow head/hair coverings worn for religious reasons, such as hijabs, in a sign of the continuing ethnic diversification of the convenience store labor force in Japan.

Source: Lawson via Sankei Shimbun via Yahoo! Japan News
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