"Women's Basic Policy Framework 2026" Has Been Finalized

On June 25, the government adopted the “Women’s Basic Policy Framework 2026,” which outlines key policies for women’s participation and gender equality. The three priority areas are “Health,” “Growth Strategy Sectors,” and “Regions.” Below, we highlight the content most relevant to businesses.

 ◆ Support for Women’s Health Throughout Their Lifetimes

The following initiatives have been outlined to promote action by companies, health insurers, and other relevant entities:

1) Accelerating Investment in Health

 Strengthening “Collaborative Health,” a system in which employers collaborate with health insurers to promote employee health

2) Strengthening Health Management and Measures to Address Women’s Health Issues in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Supporting health management initiatives in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as continuing to establish Women’s Health Support Desks and providing incentives to businesses certified as “Excellent Health Management Corporations”

 ◆ Promoting Women’s Participation in 17 Strategic Fields

In addition to measures to promote employment in 17 strategic fields—such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI) (including reskilling support) and the creation of comfortable workplace environments (publicizing best practices), the plan outlines initiatives to support the balance between work and childcare or elder care, as well as the realization of diverse and flexible work styles. It also addresses the creation of environments that enable continued employment and behavioral changes within companies.

 ◆Creating Communities Where Women Can Thrive and Live Comfortably

 Regarding the development of female talent and the creation of employment opportunities—which serve as the foundation for building strong regional economies—the plan outlines measures such as promoting the establishment of collaborative frameworks (Regional Vision Promotion Platforms) centered on universities to foster local female talent, and supporting initiatives undertaken by local governments through grants such as the Regional Women’s Empowerment Promotion Grant. The plan also includes measures to create supportive working environments in agriculture and forestry.

The "Equal Pay for Equal Work" Guidelines Are Being Revised

◆What Are the “Equal Pay for Equal Work” Guidelines?

 On April 28, 2026, amended ministerial ordinances and public notices regarding “equal pay for equal work” were promulgated, and the revised “Equal Pay for Equal Work” Guidelines will take effect on October 1, 2026. These guidelines outline the fundamental principles, specific examples, and points to note regarding which differences in treatment between regular employees and non-regular employees (part-time workers, fixed-term employees, and temporary agency workers) are unreasonable or reasonable, in cases where such differences exist.

◆ Key Points of the Revised Guidelines

 Based on accumulated case law and other factors, the text has been revised to provide greater clarity and substance, and new content has been added. In particular, specific principles and examples have been added regarding various allowances (such as retirement allowances, accident-free allowances, family allowances, and housing allowances) and employee benefits (such as summer and winter vacations and awards).

 Furthermore, pursuant to the amended ministerial ordinance, regarding the items to be disclosed when hiring non-regular employees, a new provision stating that “employees may request an explanation regarding the details and reasons for differences in treatment” will be added to the current list of disclosure requirements. Explanations must be provided either “orally, utilizing supporting materials” or “by providing easy-to-understand materials that list all items requiring explanation.”

◆Required Actions for Companies

 For companies, responding to requests for explanations from non-regular employees will become even more important. It is essential to review the criteria for various allowances and employee benefits, review company rules, and establish a system for providing explanations. Based on the guidelines, and while making use of the relevant forms and leaflets published by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, companies should proceed with early verification and implementation of necessary measures.

◆To comply with the revised guidelines, companies should take the following practical steps.

1) Treatment assessment: Identifying all items related to the treatment of full-time, part-time, and contract employees

2) Verbalizing characteristics and purposes: Identifying and verbalizing the characteristics and purposes of each type of treatment.

3) Verification of rationality: Verifying the rationality of differential treatment in light of its purpose

4) Reviewing system design: Eliminating treatment disparities and redesigning the system to achieve equity

5) Revision of regulations: Revision of the employment rules and wage regulations

6) Explanation and implementation: Explaining the new system to employees and launching it. 

What should you do if you find defamatory posts about your company online?

 

◆ Consultations regarding illegal and harmful information remain at a high level

  According to a report compiled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on illegal and harmful information on the internet, the number of consultations received by the Illegal and Harmful Information Consultation Center in fiscal year 2024 was 6,403, continuing the trend of remaining at a high level following the 6,463 cases in fiscal year 2023.

  In terms of the demographics of those seeking advice, 85.2% were “individuals,” 8.2% were “sole proprietors,” and 5.7% were “companies or organizations,” with individuals accounting for the overwhelming majority.

 ◆ Key Points to Keep in Mind Regarding Measures Against Customer Harassment

  Meanwhile, starting this October, companies will be required to implement measures against customer harassment.

 The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s “Corporate Manual for Countermeasures Against Customer Harassment” cites requests for removal to website operators and requests for disclosure of the sender’s information as examples of how to respond to “defamatory harassment on social media and the internet.” Therefore, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with these procedures in case your company becomes a victim of defamation or has information posted that infringes on privacy.

 ◆Ministry of Justice Publishes Guidelines

  The “Guide to Requesting the Removal of Defamatory Posts on the Internet,” published by the Ministry of Justice on April 15, outlines the procedures for submitting removal requests directly to major providers and server administrators—such as Google, LINE Yahoo, and Meta (which operates Instagram and Facebook)—for each specific service.The guide explains which fields to click on the “removal request form” and which checkboxes to select, and it also includes email templates for removal requests.

 It is recommended that you download and save this guide.

 [Reference]

 "Guide to Requesting the Removal of Defamatory Posts on the Internet"

 https://www.moj.go.jp/JINKEN/jinken88.html

Reasons for Early Resignation Among Young Employees and Tips for Labor Management

 

  Early resignation among new graduates and young employees has become a major challenge for companies. Based on the results of the “Survey on Skill Development and Retention of Young Workers” conducted by the Japan Institute for Labor Policy and Training (JILPT), we explore the “reasons why new graduates leave their first full-time employer” and offer tips for labor management.

Trends in Reasons for Resignation

  The survey was conducted for the first time in 2016, the second time in 2019, and the third time in 2025; the target age groups and questionnaire items did not strictly align across all three surveys.

  However, looking at the responses from all employees who left their jobs in the second and third surveys, “working hours, holidays, and leave,” “wage conditions,” “deterioration of health,” and “interpersonal relationships” ranked high for both men and women, suggesting that these are universal reasons for leaving.

  Furthermore, among young people who left their jobs within one year of employment, the most prominent reasons for leaving for both men and women were “deterioration of health,” “interpersonal relationships,” and “loss of confidence,” confirming that adapting to the workplace and job immediately after joining is crucial for retention.

  On the other hand, among those with over five years of service, the top reasons for leaving were “career advancement,” “finding a job that meets desired conditions,” and “marriage, childbirth, or child-rearing,” indicating an increase in positive reasons for leaving.

Tips for Labor Management

  In the third survey, anticipating that young people’s retention rates are significantly influenced by whether they have someone to consult with regarding work-related concerns, the survey analyzed their consultation patterns.

  The findings indicate that young people who left their jobs early tended to do so without seeking advice even when they had concerns, and it was also noted that those who left tended to have less workplace communication compared to those who remained.

   The study concludes that to prevent unwanted early resignations and promote workplace retention, it is important to establish “a place where anyone can seek advice immediately after joining the company” outside the workplace.

The Child and Childcare Support Contribution System

The introduction of the Child and Childcare Support Contribution System stems from Japan’s declining birthrate and population decline.

If this situation persists and the birthrate continues to decline, it will lead to problems such as a shrinking workforce, increased burdens on the working-age population within the social security system, a decline in economic and regional vitality, impacts on living standards and the healthy development of children, and the acceleration of population aging.

Therefore, with the aim of promoting further measures to address the declining birthrate and securing stable funding, the government will introduce the Child and Childcare Support Contribution System in April 2026 and implement it in phases through 2028.

Further Stabilization of Funding for Measures to Address the Declining Birthrate

The government has previously promoted a system known as the “Child and Child-rearing Contribution.” This contribution is intended to secure funding for expanding the Child Allowance and supporting initiatives that help balance work and family life.

However, since the funding for the Child and Child-rearing Contribution is limited to the employer’s portion of Pension Insurance premiums, and the use of the collected funds is restricted to expanding the Child Allowance and similar measures, it has not resulted in truly effective measures to address the declining birthrate.

Therefore, recognizing that children and families raising children should be supported by society as a whole, and to secure a more stable source of funding for measures to address the declining birthrate, the government decided to collect small contributions from all generations of citizens enrolled in public health insurance.

Under the Child and Childcare Support Contribution System, contributions will be collected from all generations enrolled in public health insurance from fiscal year 2026 through fiscal year 2028.

The amount of the contribution under the Child and Childcare Support Contribution System varies depending on the type of public health insurance you are enrolled in and your income.

For reference, the contribution rates for the Japan Health Insurance Association’s Child and Childcare Support Contribution are as follows:

Starting with the April 2026 installment (paid in May), 0.23% (0.115% paid by the employer, 0.115% paid by the insured)

Scandinavian Airlines Case ----- Tokyo District Court Decision on April 13, 1995

 

Summary

Employees of a foreign airline company sought a provisional disposition for preservation of their position and provisional payment of wages on the grounds that their dismissal was invalid because they were dismissed due to rationalization such as business restructuring and downsizing at the Japanese branch of the airline.

The company offered to rehire some of the employees after giving them early retirement and changing their working conditions, such as the type of work specified in their labor contracts, but the employees refused the offer and were dismissed.

Point of Decision

Criteria for Determining the Validity of Dismissal by Notice of Termination with Changes.

Judgment

A framework for judgment separate from the doctrine of abuse of dismissal.

Reason

The company's notice of intent to dismiss is a notice of termination in order to change the working conditions specified in the labor contract, in other words, it is a termination of the existing labor contract with an offer to enter into a new contract, which is called a "notice of termination with changes”.

About notice of termination with changes,

 -The change in the working conditions of the workers is indispensable for the operation of the company's business.

 -The necessity of the change exceeds the disadvantages that the worker will suffer from the change in working conditions, and the offer to enter into a new contract with a change in working conditions is deemed compelling enough to justify dismissal if the worker does not accept the offer.

 -And the company has made sufficient efforts to avoid dismissal.

 Based on the above three points, it is reasonable to conclude that the company can dismiss a worker who does not respond to the offer to enter into a new contract.

⇒Considering the company's business situation in this case, the degree of disadvantage suffered by the worker, and the circumstances leading up to the dispute, the notice of termination with changes in this case satisfies the above requirements, and the dismissal in this case is valid.

Please note that the court case listed here is individual case and may be judged differently depending on the case.

Court Decisions on Dismissal _Singapore Development Bank Case, Osaka District Court, June 23, 2000

◆Tendency of judgments on location limitation and the doctrine of dismissal for reorganization

The effect of the limited work location on the decision of the law of dismissal for the purpose of reorganization is small, and it tends to be the case that reassignment is often requested as an effort to avoid dismissal.

◆Summary

A number of employees involved in remittance and foreign exchange export operations at a foreign-affiliated company were terminated following the closure of their Osaka branch. They argued that the dismissal did not meet the four requirements for a valid restructuring dismissal, that it constituted an abuse of the right to dismiss, and that it was therefore invalid. They sought confirmation of their status as employees with rights under their labor contracts, along with payment of wages, interest on delayed payment, and compensation for pain and suffering.

◆Points of Judgment

Whether efforts were made to avoid dismissal and whether the selection of dismissed employees was reasonable.

◆Judgment

The dismissal was judged to be valid because the other requirements for dismissal by liquidation were also satisfied.

◆Reason

The workers in question were found to be limited to the Osaka branch where they were hired. The limitation of the place of employment gives the workers the benefit of not being transferred without their consent, but does not give the employer the benefit of not having them transferred. Therefore, the target of personnel reduction is not automatically determined to be the employees of the branch to be closed.

⇒ For employees of branches scheduled to close, the possibility of avoiding layoff depends on whether they can be reassigned to other branches, given the unavoidable nature of the closure. 

◆Possibility of transfer

-It cannot be said that it was unfair that the Tokyo Branch did not solicit voluntary retirement in order to transfer the said workers to the other branch.

-The company's decision to transfer the workers to the Tokyo branch office, where there are no vacancies, is not reasonable because it would mean that employees who are skilled in the work at the Tokyo branch office would be forced to resign, and then the workers would be put in charge of work that they are not skilled in, depending on the nature of the work.

 ⇒ In light of the above, it cannot be said that the company lacked efforts to avoid dismissal, and it is unavoidable that the employees of the Osaka branch would be subject to dismissal if they cannot be transferred.

Apply for change of status of residence from "College Student" to "Work" as soon as possible!

 ◆Immigration Service Agency appeals

 For companies planning to hire foreign students from next April, it is recommended to apply for change of status of residence as early as possible. The Immigration Service Agency is calling for applications to be submitted between December 1 and the end of January, as applications by foreign students who plan to join a company in April are concentrated between January and March every year, and there is a possibility that the screening process will not be completed by the desired date if there are insufficient or late documents submitted. Before applying, please refer to the list of documents to be submitted on the Immigration Service  Agency's website and carefully check that all the necessary documents are in order. Insufficient documents may delay the date of the result and affect the procedure for joining the company.

◆New cases where required documents can be omitted

 From December 1, 2025, when applying for permission to change status of residence from "College Student" to "Engineer/Humanities/International Services" or "Research," it will be possible to omit some of the required documents if any of the following apply (temporary employment is not applicable). It is advisable to confirm whether or not you are eligible before submitting the application.

 1) Graduates (or prospective graduates) of Japanese universities (including graduates of graduate and junior colleges)

 2) Graduates of excellent universities abroad: Foreign universities ranked in the top 300 in two or more of the three world university rankings are eligible.

 3) When working at an institution that currently accepts individuals who have received permission to change their status of residence from “Student” to a work-eligible status: This applies when a foreign national holding the desired status of residence (limited to those who have received permission to change from the “Student” status) is currently employed by the institution and has received at least one extension of stay while working at that institution.

The Immigration Service Agency

To those who are planning to apply for a change of status from "College Student" to "Worker" 

https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/10_00240.html

One Year after the Enforcement of the Freelance Law, Current Status of Guidance on Violations

 

◆445 cases of violations

November 1 marked one year since the enforcement of the Freelance Business Transactions Law (hereinafter referred to as the "Freelance Law"), and the Fair Trade Commission, Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, and Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, which are the ministries and agencies under the jurisdiction of the Law, announced the results of a survey (November 2024 to September 2025) conducted among 30,000 ordering businesses regarding their transactions with freelance workers. The results of the survey are now publicly available.

According to the results, the Fair Trade Commission issued 4 "recommendations" and 441 "instructions" for violations of the Freelance Law. The recommendations were made to major publishing companies, music schools, and others for violations of Article 3, Paragraph 1 (obligation to clearly state business terms), Article 4, Paragraph 5 (obligation to pay remuneration on time), and Article 5, Paragraph 2, Item 1 (prohibition of requests to provide unfair economic benefits) of the Act.

In addition, in March of this year, the Committee intensively investigated businesses in the game software industry, animation production work, and relaxation industry, and instructed 45 companies to correct the descriptions in contracts and purchase orders, the method of placing orders, and the method of setting payment due dates.

 ◆Attention should also be paid to anti-harassment measures and recruitment.

According to prefectural labor bureaus, there have been many cases of guidance, etc. concerning violations of the obligation to establish a system for anti-harassment measures (Article 14 of the Freelance Law) and the obligation to accurately display recruitment information (Article 14 of the same law).

The ordering business must take measures such as establishing a system for consultation to prevent harassment from harming the working environment of freelancers.

When recruiting freelancers through advertisements, etc., the information must not be false or misleading, and must be kept accurate and up-to-date.

When outsourcing work to freelancers, it is necessary to reconfirm the items regulated by the Freelance Law.

Record of the regular press conference of the Director-General dated November 5, 2025, Fair Trade Commission of Japan.
https://www.jftc.go.jp/houdou/teirei/2025/251105.html

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare "One year has passed since the enforcement of the Act on the Proper Treatment of Transactions between Freelancers and Business Operators!
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/bunya/freelance_00006.html

Support Tools for Explaining HR and Labor Matters to Foreign Workers

Japanese legal systems and employment practices are often unfamiliar to foreign workers. For this reason, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) has issued support tools to help explain workplace rules, including the reasons and background, to deepen understanding.

 ◆"Key Points and Examples for Labor Management in Workplaces with Foreign Employees"

The book covers nine themes such as recruitment, wages, working hours, etc., and provides for each actual situation that can be assumed in employment management: 

(1) Points that should be read and understood before explaining to non-Japanese employees

(2) Examples of explanations in "easy Japanese" that can actually be spoken and shown to foreign nationals as they are.

 For example, regarding documents to be submitted by workers after being hired, it is explained with rubi annotations that "In Japan, the company will calculate taxes and insurance on your behalf. Please provide the company with the necessary information so that we can do this for you.” 

 ◆Multilingual Glossary for Employment Management

This glossary provides definitions and example sentences for approximately 420 labor- and social insurance-related terms commonly used in hr and labor management situations. In addition to easy Japanese, 9 languages (English, Korean, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Tagalog, Vietnamese, Nepali, Portuguese, Spanish, Indonesian, Cambodian, Thai, Myanmarese, and Mongolian) are supported.

 When explaining employment regulations, etc. to foreign workers, it is expected to search for terms that may be difficult to understand and provide translations, or to be used by the foreign employees themselves as a dictionary and for pre-employment learning of hr and labor-related terms.

 ◆Model Employment Regulations, etc.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's Model Employment Regulations are also available in foreign languages. In addition, there is a "Working Conditions Handbook" for foreign nationals working in Japan, as well as educational materials and resources useful for preventing work-related accidents involving foreign workers.

[Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, "Are you having trouble explaining hr and labor issues to foreign nationals?"]

https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/koyou_roudou/koyou/jigyounushi/tagengoyougosyu.html

[Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, "Safety and Health Management for Foreign Workers"]

https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/0000186714.html

National Tax Agency has released "How to Make Year-End Adjustment”

The National Tax Agency has released a 64-page pamphlet entitled "How to Make Year-End Adjustment for 2025.” There are several changes in this year's year-end adjustment. It is important for companies to check and prepare for the changes as early as possible. The pamphlet lists the following three points as "changes compared to last year.”

 ◆Revised items for year-end adjustment

 1 Revision of basic deduction for income tax, etc.

 (1) Revision of basic deduction: The amount of basic deduction ranges from 580,000 yen to 950,000 yen depending on total income.

 (2) Revision of deduction for employment income: The minimum amount to be guaranteed is 650,000 yen.

 (3) Establishment of special deduction for specified relatives: For relatives between 19 and 23 years of age who share the same livelihood with the income earner and whose total income exceeds 580,000 yen and does not exceed 1,230,000 yen (specified relatives), the deduction ranges from 30,000 yen to 630,000 yen depending on the total income amount.

 (4) Revision of income requirements for dependents: Total income requirement for spouse and dependents earning the same livelihood is 580,000 yen or less.

 2 Special deduction for housing loans based on the method using the year-end balance statement (statement method).

 3 Key points to consider regarding payroll tax withholding procedures for salaries in Fiscal Year 2026 and beyond.

 Employee understanding of the system is essential for error-free year-end adjustments. For this reason, please check the pamphlet published this time and the "Page for Understanding the Year-end Adjustment" (National Tax Agency) scheduled to be released in October, and make sure that your employees are aware of the revised points.

 National Tax Agency, "How to make year-end adjustments for 2025."

 https://www.nta.go.jp/publication/pamph/gensen/nencho2025/pdf/nencho_all.pdf

Myna Insurance Card will be available on smartphones from September

Currently, My number card holders can use the functions of their My number card on their smartphones by downloading an application, but from September, the functions of the Myna Insurance Card will be available at medical institutions and other facilities where the equipment is ready.

 ◆How can I use mynumber insurance card with my smartphone?

In order to use your my number card with a smartphone, you need to download the mynaportal application. And you must prepare the following

 The actual my number card

 PIN number (4-digit number) for entering the card   *only for iPhone

 Password for the digital certificate for signing the My Number Card (6 to 16 alphanumeric digits set at the municipal office)

From the Myna Portal application, hold up your My Number card to your smartphone and scan it to complete the login. After logging in, register your My Number Card for health insurance card use.

Next, the functions of your My Number Card will be installed in your smartphone. For details, please refer to the following website of the Digital Agency.

 Digital Agency "My Number Card on Smartphone

 https://www.digital.go.jp/policies/mynumber/smartphone-certification

 ◆Operation at reception

The reception procedure at medical institutions, etc., uses a card reader with face recognition, in the same way as when accepting a medical application with a mina-number insurance card. Select the appropriate terminal on the reception screen, authenticate yourself at the terminal, and proceed to enter consent information when you hold your smartphone-equipped mina-insurance card over the general-purpose card reader for smartphones.

 ◆How long can I use the conventional health insurance card?

Conventional health insurance cards will expire sequentially (the longest expiration date is December 1 of this year) as a result of the transition to the myna insurance card. Therefore, for those who do not have a Myna insurance card or have not registered to use the Myna insurance card, a "certificate of eligibility" will be issued by the health insurance association or local government (for those who are enrolled in the late-stage medical care system for the elderly or those who are newly enrolled in the system, a certificate of eligibility will be issued as a provisional measure until the end of July 2026 regardless of whether they have a Myna insurance card or not. (This is a provisional measure until the end of July 2026 for those enrolled in the Late-Stage Senior Citizen's Health Care System and new enrollees, etc., regardless of their Myna insurance card status.) If you present this card at the counter of a medical institution, you will be able to receive insured medical treatment as before.

Satisfaction Points of Generation Z and Measures to Prevent Turnover in Small Businesses

Generation Z (roughly defined as the younger generation under the age of 25) young employees are not as satisfied with the current situation at their companies as they thought they were. According to a survey by Leverages Corporation, 51.5% of Gen Z are satisfied with the way they work. On the other hand, 68.0% of HR and managers believe that "employees are satisfied with the way they work now," showing a gap of about 17 points between the two. There seems to be a surprising gap between the real voices of the frontline and the perceptions of management.

 ◆Satisfaction Points of Generation Z

 Generation Z is the generation most likely to feel particularly satisfied with "short overtime hours" and "personal relationships with superiors. Many of them have also experienced "emotional support" and "suggestions for transfer" that made them feel that the company and their bosses cared about them, which stopped them from leaving their jobs.

 ◆Measures that small and medium-sized companies can take

 What kind of measures can small and medium-sized companies take to prevent employee turnover? The key word is "communication.

Create a place where employees feel free to talk about their problems and questions.

 ⇒Catch small daily changes through regular 1-on-1s, daily reports, chats and frequent pulse surveys.

Create a system for young employees to share information and learnings they gain every day at morning meetings, meetings, and chats.

 ⇒Make it a rule to add your own opinion, even if it is just one word, so that changes in thoughts and feelings can be easily seen.

Send out interviews and success stories of young employees.

 ⇒Elevate self-efficacy by recognizing growth and efforts together.

Convey an attitude of "I care about you.

 ⇒Management and managers should also proactively talk to each other and value small conversations.

Paying attention to small daily changes and feelings will lead to reassurance among younger employees.

Mandatory Heat Stroke Prevention in the Workplace

 ◆Summary of Amendment

In response to the recent heat wave and the increasing number of deaths and injuries caused by heat stroke in the workplace, heat stroke countermeasures in the workplace have been strengthened as a legal obligation. Specifically, on June 1, 2025, the revised Occupational Safety and Health Regulations came into effect, making heat stroke countermeasures in the workplace mandatory.

The regulation applies to work that is expected to be "performed in an environment with a Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) of 28°C or higher or a temperature of 31°C or higher for more than one hour or more than four hours per day. In order to prevent serious heat stroke, businesses are now obliged to "establish a system," "create procedures," and "inform all concerned parties.

◆Main obligations

Establishment and dissemination of a reporting system: Establishment of a system for "workers who have subjective symptoms of heat stroke" or "workers who find workers who may suffer from heat stroke" to report the fact and dissemination of the system to the workers concerned.

*In addition to receiving reports, efforts should be made to proactively identify workers with serious symptoms of heat stroke by adopting an optimal temperature control buddy system in which employees are assigned in pairs and talk to each other and mutually check each other, utilizing wearable devices, etc. and cooling devices in the work environment.

Preparation and dissemination of measures to prevent serious illness: To enable prompt and accurate decisions when workers who may suffer from heat stroke are identified, 

(1)Emergency contact network at the workplace, contact information and location of the emergency transport center, etc., 

(2)Implementation of measures necessary to prevent serious illness due to heat stroke, such as work release, physical cooling, transport to a medical institution, etc. 

(3)Preparation of procedures and dissemination of these procedures to the workers concerned.

Failure to take these measures may result in imprisonment for up to six months or a fine of up to 500,000 yen. In order to protect the lives of employees and to ensure compliance with laws and regulations, it will become even more important to review the work environment and provide education and training to employees.

Possibly illegal, beware of self-destructive sales!

 

◆What is self-destructive sales?

Self-destructive sales refer to the act of employees purchasing their own products with their own money in order to meet company sales targets or quotas. Typical examples are post office employees purchasing New Year's postcards with their own money or convenience store employees purchasing unsold merchandise. This has become a problem in recent years as it leads to financial loss and emotional distress for employees.

It is not illegal for a company to set sales targets or quotas for its employees. However, depending on how they are achieved and the degree of coercion, various problems may arise under civil law and labor-related laws. 

◆Problematic cases

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) has also published a leaflet, "Labor-Related Legal Issues of Forcing Workers to Purchase Goods," calling for attention to such self-destructive sales, etc. 

The leaflet lists the following as problematic cases:

+The company used its position as an employer to force workers to purchase goods they did not need.

+The company asked workers to purchase the company's products, but when they refused, the company took disciplinary action or dismissed them.

Other cases that require attention include:

+The company had set a sales quota for each employee, and had clearly indicated that failure to meet the quota would result in disadvantageous treatment in terms of personnel affairs.

+The company sets quotas that are practically unattainable, and takes adverse personnel actions if quotas are not achieved.

 Self-destructive sales are an act that places a heavy burden on employees. To avoid excessive penalties and forced purchases, it is essential to make efforts to ensure that they are well known and managed.

Check the Dispatch Business Report now

The dispatch business report is a statutory report that dispatching business owners are required to submit once a year under the Worker Dispatching Act. The report includes information on the status of dispatched workers' contracts, health and safety management, and implementation of career advancement measures. The deadline for submission is usually at the end of June each year, but please check in advance to ensure that the contents are accurate and submitted on time.

◆Failure to submit has a negative impact on business continuity

Failure to submit a report will result in a fine, revocation of the dispatch license, or a business suspension order. Loss of credibility when false reports are discovered can lead to a loss of business partners and threaten the livelihood of dispatched workers. Many businesses that have had their licenses revoked have cited inadequate reporting as a factor.

◆Points of the Business Report

1. Compliance with the 2024 Form Change

The old form will not be accepted due to changes in the placement of columns in the new form. Please download the latest form from the website of the Prefectural Labor Bureau and use it.

2. Pay attention to the "Statement of Income and Expenses" and the "Report on the Percentage of the Dispatched Companies Involved" as well.

Note that at the same time as the business report, for companies with a fiscal year ending in March, a statement of income and expenditure for worker dispatching undertakings and a report on the ratio of dispatched workers to related clients will also be due at the same time.

3. Original documents must be preserved, even if they are submitted electronically

Even in the case of electronic applications (e-Gov), the obligation to preserve original documents arises, and a data preservation system must be established. In today's world, where compliance with laws and regulations is a prerequisite for business survival, report management is the cornerstone of business risk management.

After the enforcement of the revised Dispatched Worker Law in 2020, it will be mandatory to attach a labor-management agreement confirming the implementation status of equal pay for equal work (when the labor-management agreement method is selected), and this has strengthened its aspect as a progress management tool for improvement of treatment, but in this regard, there is a common mistake of submitting the “36 Agreement” with the dispatch business report. When one hears the term "labor-management agreement," the first thing that comes to mind is probably the 36 Agreement, but care must be taken.

Management practices can influence the extent and bias of overtime work

 Due to reforms in work styles, the paid leave utilization rate has been steadily increasing. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's Comprehensive Survey of Working Conditions, the rate rose from 56.3% in 2020 to 65.3% in 2024, and appears to be on track to reach the government target of 70% or more by 2028.

 On the other hand, while overtime hours are decreasing overall, the number of overwork deaths continues to increase. There is also concern about increased stress among employees due to personnel shortages and delays in filling vacancies. This phenomenon may be attributed to the prevalence of bias among individuals as well as the significant amount of overtime work.

◆Factors on the management side

 The management factors that should be considered when assessing the amount and bias of overtime work may include the following:

・Given the corporate culture, in which working long hours is considered a virtue, it will be challenging to recruit adequately.

・The mismatch between workload and staffing is caused by the inappropriate allocation of work and staffing.

・A thorough evaluation of work processes and efficiencies is essential to identify areas for improvement in inefficient process management

・Poor time management skills may be attributable to a lack of individual skills, but they may also stem from a lack of proper guidance and support by management.

・Workload is another issue that arises from management's failure to allocate work in an effective manner.

 To improve this situation, it is essential to raise awareness on the part of management and establish efficient work processes. Failure to properly manage operations can lead to an increase in overtime hours and an exodus of talented personnel.

◆Improved productivity through increased efficiency and skill development

 In Japan, wages have not risen sufficiently to keep pace with rising prices. If such a situation is prolonged and overtime work increases for the sake of overtime pay, it will be a real disaster. Even in cases where compensation for overtime is available, managerial practices that contradict social norms may result in diminished employee satisfaction.

 Improvement through efficiency and skill development is the primary path to success. It would be prudent to consider an objective approach to analyzing and enhancing work processes and efficiency.

Bankruptcies due to employees "resigning" will reach a record 87 in 2024, a significant increase from the previous record.

 

  The shakeout of small and medium-sized enterprises that cannot "raise wages" is likely to accelerate by 2025.

  Of the 342 cases of labor shortage bankruptcies identified in 2024, 87 cases were found to be "employee retirement-type" bankruptcies, which were caused directly or indirectly by the resignation of employees or senior management. That's an increase of 20 cases, or nearly 30 percent, from the previous year (67 cases), significantly higher than 2019 (71 cases), when labor shortages peaked in many industries, and the highest number since 2013, when the data was compiled.

  By industry, the largest number of "employee retirement-type" bankruptcies in 2024 was in the service industry (31 cases), accounting for 35.6% of the total. It was the first time in five years since 2019 that the service industry accounted for the largest number of bankruptcies among all industries. Software development and other IT industries, as well as temp agencies, beauty salons, and nursing homes, all of which tend to have lower retention rates than other industries and experience labor shortages, are particularly common.

  The next largest number of cases was in the "construction industry" (18 cases), where the retirement of employees with qualifications essential for business operations, such as designers and construction supervisors, made it difficult for companies to operate their businesses. The "Manufacturing" and "Transportation/Telecommunications" sectors had more than 10 cases per year for the first time, with a string of cases in which businesses were unable to operate due to the retirement of factory workers and drivers.

  Recently, employees who are struggling with prolonged price hikes are increasingly calling for wage increases. In response to this trend, consideration of continuous wage increases has spread from large companies to small and midsize firms. On the other hand, there are many small and medium-sized firms that want to raise wages but are unable to do so due to a lack of profitability, and the response to wage hikes is becoming increasingly polarized.

  However, as the mobility of human resources increases against the backdrop of a severe shortage of workers, the "risk of not improving compensation" is increasing, especially among small and medium-sized companies, as executives and employees who are fed up with unsatisfactory wage increases and management that is reluctant to improve compensation are resigning. As the trend of attracting good talent with high salaries through wage increases spreads through the labor market, there is a growing possibility that the number of "wage hardship bankruptcies," in which employees quit due to unsatisfactory wage increases, will increase in 2025.

Improvement of digital literacy, an essential measure to combat labor shortages

Many companies are taking various measures to address the growing labor shortage problem. According to a survey by the Japan Institute for Labor Policy and Training (JILPT), approximately 60% of companies in the retail and service industries are experiencing a labor shortage of full-time employees and are struggling to cope with the situation.

◆Improvement of operational efficiency through the use of ICT

According to the survey results, the most frequently implemented measure to address labor shortages is "streamlining and automating operations through the use of ICT," with approximately 75% of companies implementing this measure. In other industries, the introduction of RPA and the implementation of AI-based business support systems are progressing. In the future, it will be necessary to utilize AI and other technologies for simple and routine tasks, and have people focus on high-value-added operations.

◆Human resource development and digital literacy

Improving the skills of existing employees is essential to the success of manpower management. With the increasing digitization of business operations, improving employees' ICT literacy, and more broadly, their "digital literacy" will directly lead to strengthening the competitiveness of the company.

Digital literacy refers to a wide range of skills and abilities to understand and effectively use digital technologies in general. It includes ICT skills as well as knowledge and skills in information retrieval and evaluation, and privacy and security management.

The company must first clarify the objective of improving digital literacy and share it with all employees to unify awareness within the company. Then, it is necessary to set up a system to share knowledge and expertise on digital skills and to provide education.

◆Creating an environment in which diverse human resources can play an active role

On the other hand, the survey results also indicate that raising wages and diversifying recruitment methods at the time of job offerings and actively promoting the elderly, women, and foreign human resources are also important measures to address labor shortages. The establishment of these systems will be necessary for companies to survive.

Points to note when posting information regarding recruitment on social networking sites, etc.

◆Recruitment advertisements must indicate the name of the recruiter, etc.

Under the Employment Security Law, when providing information, etc. on recruitment through advertisements, etc., including those on the Internet and SNS such as X, false or misleading representations must not be made (Article 5-4).

Recently, there have been some cases of recruiting workers to commit crimes on the Internet (shady jobs), and some of these advertisements may be misleading as normal recruitment. 

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) encourages employers to be sure to display the following six information when recruiting workers directly through SNS, etc.: (1) the name (or names) of the recruiter, (2) address, (3) contact information (telephone number, etc.), (4) job description, (5) work location, and (6) wages.

Q How far should "Address (Location)" be listed?

A Building name, floor number, and even room number must be listed.

Q What should be listed as "contact information"?

A You must provide either a phone number, email address, or a link to a dedicated contact form provided on your website.

Q Is it acceptable to include a link to the recruitment information on the company's website where the name and other information is listed, without including the name and other information itself?

A Since a link to a company's website may be misleading, including whether or not it is a job offer in the first place, it is necessary to include the above 6 information in the advertisement itself that provides the recruitment information.

Q Is it necessary to provide the same details regarding the nature of work, place of employment and wages as required by Article 5-3 of the Employment Security Law and Article 15 of the Labor Standards Law?

A Although the job descriptions do not necessarily have to be the same, the job description, work location, and wages should be described so that job seekers will not be misled. For example, the job location may be listed as "the place of employment immediately after hiring" without stating the "scope of change in the place of employment," or it may list multiple candidate sites and say "negotiable," or it may list the wages as "1,500 yen per hour or higher," but if these are listed, it is not considered an immediate violation of Article 5-4 of the Employment Security Law.