Treatment of Telework Allowance in the Calculation of Premium Wages

On April 5, 2024, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare issued a notice regarding the exclusion of telework allowances from the calculation of premium wages.

◆Wages as the basis for premium wages

The premium wage is calculated by multiplying the hourly wage by the premium rate. However, family allowances, commuting allowances, living apart allowances, child education allowances, housing allowances, temporary wages, and wages paid for a period exceeding one month are not included in the wage base, as stipulated by law.

So-called telework allowances are generally included in the base wages for premium wages if the telework allowance falls under wages under the Labor Standards Law.

◆Cases in which telework allowances are not included in the premium wage base

However, if the telework allowance is considered as reimbursement for actual expenses necessary for business management, the telework allowance does not constitute wages and is not required to be included in the wages as the basis for premium wages.

According to this notice, in order for a telework allowance to be treated as reimbursement for actual expenses, it must be clear from its external appearance that the telework allowance is intended to identify and reimburse the amount of expenses actually incurred by the worker for the work.

◆A method of reimbursement of actual expenses

Among telework allowances, those that could be considered as reimbursement of actual expenses include the cost of purchasing office supplies, etc., communication expenses (telephone charges, communication charges for Internet connection), electricity charges, and charges for using rental office space. For the method of reimbursement of these business use portions, please refer to the method indicated in the National Tax Agency's "FAQ on Cost Sharing for Telework (related to withholding income tax)".

Excluding telework allowances from the calculation of premium wages constitutes a disadvantageous change in working conditions, and should be discussed carefully between labor and management in accordance with the law.

Recognizing Unusual Worker's Accidents for Teleworkers

A woman in her 50s working for Yokohama-based Starkey Japan, a manufacturer of hearing aids, developed an adjustment disorder because of the long hours she worked as a teleworker, according to the Yokohama North Labor Standards Inspection Office. The lawyer representing the woman announced this at a press conference held in Tokyo on April 3. The certification was dated March 8, and is unusual in that it is the first time that a worker's compensation for teleworking has been approved.

According to the certification by the Labor Standards Inspection Office, the woman was in charge of accounting at the company and began teleworking at home in 2020, the year of the Corona disaster. Her supervisor began to frequently contact her early in the morning and late at night for work-related communications and reminders, and she was often forced to work on her days off.

In March 2022, the woman developed an adjustment disorder. In the month immediately prior to her onset of the disorder, she had worked 112 hours of overtime, exceeding the overwork death line (100 hours per month).

At a press conference, a lawyer representing the woman said, "Appropriate management of working hours is necessary even for telework, which leads to more flexible work styles for workers." Starkey Japan stated in an interview, "We take this matter very seriously and will respond to it in good faith."

Guidance on providing workplace information to help eliminate mismatches between job seekers will be developed

◆The key to eliminating mismatches is to provide information

　As work needs become more diverse, it is important to provide information sought by job seekers to eliminate mismatches.

　On the other hand, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) is now formulating guidelines for providing workplace information to job seekers, based on the view that it is appropriate to provide information flexibly in response to the requests of job seekers, since it was confirmed through hearings that job seekers may find it complicated if the amount of information presented at a time is too large.

◆Interest is information about the department to which job seekers plan to belong

　The draft includes information that job seekers are interested in, such as teleworking, an active role for female employees, the percentage of male employees taking childcare leave, childcare leave, shortened working hours, and wages (including mid- to long-term prospects for salary increases), overtime hours, and paid leave utilization rate.

　Based on the results of the hearings, it is also desirable to present information related to the department to which the applicant plans to belong, in addition to information on a company-by-company basis.

◆To make the text easier to read, devise a publication method

　The amount of information to be posted on recruitment websites and job postings should be limited to the information necessary for recruitment, and information on human capital should be posted on a separate page with links for job seekers to view according to their own interests.

◆Methods suitable for small and medium enterprises

　For small and medium-sized enterprises worried about the responsibility of maintaining and updating their website, the use of 'Shokuba-rabo' (https://shokuba.mhlw.go.jp/) is recommended. This service is advantageous because the website is linked to the Hello Work Internet service and information can be viewed free of charge.