People in Japan have always been highly conscious of cleanliness, washing their hands and gargling.
Unlike in the West, people are less likely to use greetings such as handshakes and hugs.
Other factors include the fact that in English, for example, there are popping sounds on the lips when words are uttered (e.g., when pronouncing "P" and "B"), while in Japanese, there are fewer popping sounds.
A total of 14 hourly contract workers at Japan Post appealed the disparity between them and full-time employees regarding benefits and leave systems, and the Supreme Court ruled on October 15 that five treatment differences, including alimony, were unreasonable in three court cases.
-The gist of the Supreme Court's decision-
While it is respected as a business decision to provide alimony or paid sick leave to ensure continuous service for full-time employees, it is an unreasonable disparity within the meaning of Article 20 of the Labor Contract Act not to provide it to contract employees who are expected to work a reasonable amount of continuous service.
It is an unreasonable disparity that contract employees are not paid holiday pay at the beginning and end of the year, which is compensation for their work during the busiest season.
It is an unreasonable disparity to deny summer and winter leave to contract employees who are not on a short-term assignment for the busy season only.
On October 13, the Supreme Court ruled that the disparity was legal in two cases that challenged whether the disparity in bonuses and retirement benefits between regular and non-regular workers violated Article 20 of the former Labor Contract Act (prohibition of unreasonable working conditions for a fixed period of time).
The court ruled that it was not unreasonable to not provide any bonus or retirement benefits to non-regular workers at all due to differences in the nature of the job and the scope of the change in assignment.
The decisions were made in the Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University case and the Metro Commerce case.
In the Osaka Medical College case, the High Court ordered the payment of 60% of the bonus for newly graduated full-time employees, and in the Metro Commerce case, the High Court ordered the payment of 25% of retirement benefits calculated on a full-time employee basis.
The cases referred to prosecutors by the
Labor Standards Inspection Office are generally divided into the following
seven types
(1) Those for which no health and safety measures
have been taken in relation to work-related injuries.
(2) Covering up Workers' compensation
(3) Long hours of work
(4) Unpaid wages (minimum wage)
(5) Overtime for non-payment of wages
(6) Violations of the law pertaining to
technical interns
(7) Others (e.g., failure to give notice of
working conditions, failure to give notice of termination, failure to prepare
wage ledgers, false reports, etc.)
In the first case, there were cases where
no risk prevention measures were taken, work was carried out by unqualified
personnel, and work was not authorized by the government authorities. Just like
the police, the Labor Standards Inspection Office appears to be dealing
strictly with cases where accidents (industrial accidents) have occurred and no
measures have been taken to protect human lives. There were several cases of
work-related accidents that were not reported to administrative authorities
(i.e., cases of failure to submit reports of worker injuries and illnesses =
(2)), indicating the importance of reporting accidents.
On the other hand, in relation to working
conditions, the majority of cases were related to (3) long working hours, (4)
failure to pay wages (minimum wage), and (5) overtime for non-payment of wages.
In light of the content of the public announcements, it can be assumed that the
government considers whether or not a case can be filed, taking into account
the key issues of the labor standards administration at the time, repeated
violations and the extent of damage. Although not made public in principle, it
is believed that there are a considerable number of cases involving criminal complaints
and accusations made by employees, given the recent social focus on labor
problems and the growing awareness of employee rights.
In summary, the following matters appear to
have been taken into account by the Labor Standards Inspection Office when
referring the case as a judicial case. Companies would need to anticipate and
address the risks based on these considerations.
・Repeated violations of the law
・Number of people affected (number of
people, duration and amount of damage)
・Key administrative issues and matters of
high social concern
・Industrial accidents (serious accidents)
and violations of the law (have a causal connection)
・Covering up Workers' compensation
・Charges and accusations
◆You can't be too sure
Discussions are likely to proceed in the direction of removing the new corona infection from the list of designated infectious diseases. However, there are many companies that have already been hit hard since the state of emergency was declared, and the future economic recovery is not expected to improve rapidly, and a wave of bankruptcies and dismissal is expected to arrive with a time lag.
As we head into winter, there may be an increase in the number of people infected with the new corona virus, an increase in the infectivity of the virus due to its mutation, and outbreaks of infectious diseases caused by other viruses.
Even if a company is managing to hold its own for now, depending on the strength of the company and the future situation, it may have no choice but to consider the elimination of full-time employees due to the downturn in performance caused by the corona disaster.
No matter how much you say, "Because it's Corona. Even if we say "it's an emergency," in court cases, a decline in performance due to Corona will most likely be treated as a dismissal for management reasons, not as a natural disaster or other unavoidable reason. As you know, the dismissal of a permanent employee is judged based on strict requirements (factors) (the four elements of dismissal).
◆Avoid dismissal whenever possible
One of these four elements is "implementation of the obligation to make efforts to avoid dismissal". When implementing the dismissal process, you should seek and prepare for measures that can be taken to secure employment as much as possible (and reduce the burden on the worker as much as possible, even if you have no choice but to dismiss them).
There are many possible strategies, such as
*Transfer due to transfer or secondment, etc.
*Ordered to stay home by paying absence allowance (furloughs, outplacement leave, etc.)
*Payment of a lump-sum severance payment equivalent to absence allowance and termination of the employment contract by agreement
*Recommendation to resign by proposing additional severance packages, etc., in consideration of the risk of litigation.
◆Check the work rules and regulations
In addition, it is important that the treatment of wages at the time of furloughs (a provision to reduce the amount of absence allowance) and the possibility of dismissal in the event of corona and other situations should be clearly stated in the employment regulations and individual labor contracts as a precondition for taking such measures.
You should also prepare briefing materials and materials to persuade employees to dismiss the employee in advance in case of a dismissal due to Corona or other reasons.
A more detailed FAQ that can be used by human resources and general affairs personnel to respond to questions from employees about the handling of human resources and labor issues in the event of a corona or disaster, etc., will enable the company to respond in a consistent manner and reduce the burden on the personnel in charge.
