[tjpnz]

It should be added that layoffs are not commonplace in Japan. What you'll see instead are bonus cuts and salary reductions (at most 20 percent). To do US style layoffs you would need to show that the affected department was directly involved in a line of business the company has abandoned. If this isn't the case the employees stand a good chance of successfully suing the company in court. And then there's the reputational damage which would be considerable in a country where lifetime employment is valued.

In other words this kind of behavior wouldn't be viewed as all that surprising locally.