Meaning of “Black/White Kigyō (Company)” in Japanese

Definition of  “Black Company” in Japanese

ブラック企業 (black kigyou) literally means “black company”, a nickname for “an evil company” where people work very hard until midnight for low salaries. It is called “black company” because it represents 闇 (やみ, “the dark side”) of the Japanese society; it is those companies that drive a number of Japanese people into “過労死かろうし (karōshi)”, i.e. death by overwork. Some people use this word more broadly to describe companies where employees work very hard for high salaries and sacrifice their social lives.

Furthermore, the term “black” is used by itself as an adjective to describe a hard-working company. For instance, you can say “あの企業はブラックだ” meaning “That company is ‘black’ (makes you work like crazy)”. You can also describe jobs/work as ‘black’, as in “官僚かんりょうの仕事しごとはかなりブラックだ” meaning “The work of bureaucrats is really ‘black’ (very hard).” or “コンビニバイトはマジブラックだ” meaning “A part-time job at a convenience store is really ‘black’ (very hard)“.

Examples of “Black Kigyō”

There are some well-known stereotypical characteristics of “black companies”, such as:

• hire a plethora of employees every year and exploit them as pawns
• advertise themselves as “friendly, accommodating” companies that treat staff like family.
• keep their office brightly lit until midnight every day
• do not pay for overtime hours.
• パワハラ (“power harassment”) is prevalent

Definition of “White Company” in Japanese

On the other hand, ホワイト企業 (white kigyou, “white company”) describes an ideal company where you can go home at around 5 pm every day and yet get paid very well. Similar to ‘black’, the term ‘white’ can describe good jobs/companies, such as “あの会社はホワイトだ” meaning “That company is ‘white’ (stress-free).”

Example Sentences

Ex1:
もし、何なにかの間違まちがいでブラック企業に入社にゅうしゃしてしまったら、躊躇ちゅうちょせずにすぐ辞やめよう。
If you mistakenly join an evil company, don’t hesitate to leave the company soon.

Ex2
「我々われわれはアットホームな雰囲気ふんいきの会社かいしゃです」のような怪あやしい一文いちぶんをみたら、ブラック企業と疑うたがえ
If you see a dodgy line such as “Our company has an アットホーム (‘at-home’)  atmosphere”, you should suspect that the company might be an evil company.
(Note)
“アットホーム” (“at-home”) is a Japanese-English word meaning “accommodating”, “friendly” or “homelike”. It is said that a lot of black companies use this word in their advertisements to allure credulous job-hunting students.

Ex3
あの会社かいしゃは超絶ちょうぜつブラックだからやめとけ
That company is really “black” (infamous for bad the work environment), so you shouldn’t apply for it.

Synonyms and Related Expressions

Synonyms: 悪徳あくとく企業きぎょう (an evil company)
Antonyms: ホワイト企業きぎょう (white company)
Synonyms in English: notorious company, hellhole
Related words and phrases: 過労死かろうし (karōshi), ブラック (black), ホワイト (white), 企業きぎょう (company)

See also

Japanese Wasei-Eigo List (“Japlish”) and Their Meanings

黒歴史 (kuro rekishi): What’s “Black History” in Japanese Slang