Foreign exodus leaves its mark on Tokyo

東京外國居民大批移居
Foreign exodus leaves its mark on Tokyo
英國《金融時報》 格溫•羅賓森東京報導


In the Roppongi entertainment district in Tokyo, the biggest American sports bar and a neighbouring British-style pub are sometimes known as “gaijin corner” – the colloquial term for foreigners. On Friday nights the two bars, their television screens blaring US baseball and European football, usually heave with expatriate office workers.


在東京六本木休閒娛樂區，那個最大的美國體育酒吧和與之相鄰的英式酒吧，有時被人們稱為“gaijin角”。 Gaijin是“外國人”的日語發音。每逢週五晚上，兩個酒吧里的外國人川流不息——都是一些外派人員，酒吧的電視里大聲播放著美國的棒球賽和歐洲的足球賽。

But on a recent weekend, the crowds at Legends bar and the Hobgoblin, part of the same chain, were half their usual size – and mainly Japanese. Business has been down about 35 per cent since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan's north -east coast.


然而，最近的一個週末，往日擁擠的傳奇(Legends)酒吧和鬼怪(Hobgoblin)酒吧里，客人少了一半，還主要是日本人。自從3月11日襲擊日本東北部海岸的災難性地震和海嘯發生以來，兩個酒吧的營業額大約減少了35%。它們屬於同一連鎖品牌旗下。

“Sales are recovering a bit now but the decline is definitely due to expats leaving – you can see it,” says one staff member.


一位店員表示：“生意現在略微有所好轉，但如你所見，生意變差絕對是因為外派人員的離開。”

In many respects, Tokyo life has returned to normal. The aftershocks have stopped, shops are fully stocked and schools schedules are regular again – although student numbers are down 20-25 per cent at international schools.


從許多方面來說，東京的生活已經恢復正常。餘震已經停止，商店庫存充足，學校的教學也恢復了正常——儘管國際學校的學生數量減少了20%至25%。

For a section of Tokyo's large foreign community, however, life is far from normal. Many fled the city after the disaster and, while most have returned, a second exodus appears to have started, particularly among those with young families.


然而，對於東京龐大外國人群體中的一部分人來說，生活還遠未恢復正常。災​​難發生後，許多外國人逃離東京，雖然大部分已經返回，但第二輪撤離風潮似乎又開始了（特別是有小孩的家庭）。

As schools prepare for the summer vacation and property contracts approach renewal deadlines, some foreign professionals are deciding to leave Japan, according to recruitment firms, relocation companies and estate agents.


獵頭公司、搬家公司和房地產中介指出，隨著暑期臨近和許多房屋出租合同到期，一些外國專業人士正打算離開日本。

About 80 per cent of expat professionals left Tokyo immediately after the disaster, says Sakie Fukushima, chief executive of G&S Global Advisers, a Tokyo recruitment advisory firm. Of those, about four-fifths came back while the rest asked to be reassigned. Ms Fukushima says she thinks more are preparing to leave. Their fears are being fanned by the unresolved crisis at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which suffered severe damage in the tsunami.


東京招聘顧問公司G&S首席執行官橘福島咲江(Sakie Fukushima)表示，外派的外國專業人士中，約有80%在災難發生後立刻離開了東京。其中約五分之四的人回來了，剩下的要求調離。橘福島表示，她認為有更多外國人正準備離開。在海嘯中嚴重受損的福島第一核電站(Fukushima Daiichi)的危機仍未解除，令他們的恐懼不斷增加。

“There is particular concern among foreign residents with children,” she says. “And on the professional level, some are worried about the economy and their employment situation.”


“在有孩子的外國人中，擔憂之心尤盛。”她表示，“而從職業層面考慮，有些外國人擔心經濟形勢，怕自己的飯碗端不穩。”

Such concerns have driven fresh demand for skilled expatriate staff in Tokyo, according to headh​​unting firms Hays, Egon Zehnder, Michael Page and T2 Tokyo. Professionals in information technology, legal, banking and accountancy are in particular demand, according to Christine Wright, m​​anaging director of Hays Japan, although she adds that her company is “seeing candidate shortages in all areas”.


獵頭公司Hays、億康先達(Egon Zehnder)、米高蒲志(Michael Page)和T2 Tokyo指出，上述擔憂促使東京對有專長的外國外派員工有了新的需求。 Hays駐日本的董事總經理克里斯廷•賴特(Christine Wright)表示，信息技術、法律、銀行和會計等行業對外國專業人士的需求量最為突出。不過，她補充表示，Hays“發現所有行業都面臨人才短缺的狀況”。

For those unfazed by safety concerns, there are rewards. Some companies are likely to pay more for such talent, says Hideaki Tsukuda, managing partner of Egon Zehnder in Japan. However, there is a growing trend to replace expats with locals, he adds.


那些不擔心安全問題的外派專業人士會得到“獎賞”。億康先達董事合夥人佃秀昭(Hideaki Tsukuda)表示，一些公司可能會提高這些人的薪酬。然而，他補充表示，用本地僱員取代外派員工是個日益明顯的趨勢。

Estate agents dealing with rental properties for expats in Tokyo say business is down significantly from a year ago. “March and April were really devastating. Probably about 50 per cent cancelled their contracts – particularly Europeans,” says Dave Koyama, manager of the foreign section of Ken Corp.


東京經營外派員工租賃業務的房地產中介表示，自1年前開始，生意顯著變差。 Ken Corp.外國部經理小山潤一郎(Dave Koyama)表示：“3月和4月的業績真是慘不忍睹。大概有50%左右的客戶取消了合同，其中主要是歐洲人。”

There are some signs of recovery: “Good properties are moving and some new people are coming to Japan,” he says. But agencies see a shift in the type of customer seeking homes. While expat families are leaving their big, four-bedroom homes , which are let for more than Y1.5m ($18,700) a month in upmarket areas, new tenants tend to be couples without children and single people.


他表示，有一些復甦的跡象，“優質房源走得很快，一些新的人正來到日本”。不過，中介們發現，尋找房源的客戶類型起了變化。過去外派員工常常舉家遷來，因此租的是高端社區月租金在150萬日元（合18,700美元）以上的大四居室，而現在的新客戶，往往是沒有孩子的夫妻倆或單身人士。

With record demand from foreign residents wanting to leave Japan, the relocation business is booming. Economove, a midsized moving company that deals mainly with foreign clients, says business is nearly 50 per cent up from a year ago.


想要離開日本的外國人數量空前高漲，催生了搬家業務的興旺。主要面向外國客戶的中型搬家公司Economove表示，其業務比1年前增長了接近50%。

“June is always busy, due to the end of the school term. But we are now working seven days a week just to keep up,” says Shinichi Shima, the manager.


該公司經理Shinichi Shima表示：“因為學期結束的緣故，六月總是很忙。但如今，我們每週工作7天，還有點忙不過來。”

“Many Germans, French and Australians are leaving Japan – they're all worried about radiation and earthquakes . . . Many are going to Singapore or Europe.”


“許多德國人、法國人和澳大利亞正在離開日本——他們都在擔心核輻射，還有地震……很多人要去新加坡或歐洲。”

A British mother sums up the concerns: “People are still unsettled. They're worried about radiation, whether they should buy local food or drink tap water,” she says.“If you have children, you really worry about them.”


一位英國媽媽總結了他們的擔心，說：“現在人心惶惶。他們擔心核輻射，不知道該不該購買本地的食物、喝自來水。如果你有小孩，你真的會為他們擔心。”

The exodus has given rise to informal opportunities. Amid the wave of invitations to farewell parties and garage sales, one stands out. At National Azabu, a supermarket popular with expatriates in Tokyo's Hiroo district, one sale notice ended: “If you don't want to buy it, come and take what's left on June 5 free – we have to leave.”


外國人的撤離也帶來了一些意外的機會。在無數的告別派對和車庫甩賣邀請函中，有一份格外顯眼。在東京広尾區很受外派人員青睞的National Azabu超市，一份促銷公告的結尾赫然寫道：“如果你不想買，請在6月5日前來這裡，免費拿走剩餘貨品——我們要走了。”



譯者/何黎