supernumerary; excess personnel; surplus staff
Refers to staff members beyond what is needed; often used in organizational or business contexts.
useless staff; deadwood
Only when written 冗員
Carries a stronger negative nuance, implying the staff are not just surplus but also unproductive or unnecessary. Often written as 冗員.
Due to the recession, the company had to cut excess personnel.
He was treated as deadwood in the company and was not entrusted with important work.
Standard kanji spelling; 冗 suggests 'redundant' or 'superfluous'.
Rare variant; 剰 means 'surplus' or 'excess'.
Compound of 冗 (redundant) + 員 (member, personnel). The variant 剰員 uses 剰 (surplus).