Polite to Colleague
Workplace · Greeting
産休に入られるとのこと、本当におめでとうございます。どうかご無理なさらず、ゆっくり休んでください。 — Congratulations on starting your parental leave. Please don't push yourself and take good care of yourself. (Workplace · Greeting, Polite to Colleague, JLPT N3)
You
産休に入られるとのこと、本当におめでとうございます。どうかご無理なさらず、ゆっくり休んでください。
さんきゅうにはいられるとのこと、ほんとうにおめでとうございます。どうかごむりなさらず、ゆっくりやすんでください。
Congratulations on starting your parental leave. Please don't push yourself and take good care of yourself.
Romaji: Sankyu ni haira reru to no koto, hontou ni omedetou gozaimasu. Douzo gomunri nasarazu, yukkuri yasunde kudasai. / Reply Romaji: Arigatou gozaimasu. Iroire to osewa ni natte, hontou ni kansha shite imasu.
Reply
ありがとうございます。いろいろとお世話になって、本当に感謝しています。
ありがとうございます。いろいろとおせわになって、ほんとうにかんしゃしています。
Thank you. I'm truly grateful for all the support you've given me.
Gesture & etiquette
Deliver this with genuine warmth and a congratulatory bow. If presenting a farewell gift, do so with both hands at this moment. If you know when they plan to return, add: 'Genki na akachan wo matteru yo!' (We're looking forward to meeting your healthy baby!). This phrase and gesture together make the departing colleague feel truly celebrated.
In Japanese workplaces, a colleague leaving for parental leave ('sankyu' — maternity/paternity leave) is typically celebrated with a small gift and warm farewell. 'Gomunri nasarazu' (please don't push yourself) is particularly important — it acknowledges the physical demands of pregnancy and early parenthood. This phrase signals that the workplace genuinely supports work-life balance.