Controversial Japanese labor reform bill (newspaper article & my essay)

245. Controversial Japanese labor reform bill clears Lower House committee
(法案が衆議院委員会を通過する)
May 26, 2018  Japan Times (Newspaper)

A Lower House committee has approved a controversial labor reform bill, paving the way for its passage through the Diet(国会通過の道筋を立てる) before the legislature closes on June 20.

At the Lower House Committee on Health, Labor and Welfare, the bill to revise related laws was approved Friday by a majority vote(多数決で) with support from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, its coalition partner Komeito and opposition Nippon Ishin no Kai.

The bill will likely be approved by the Lower House and sent to the Upper House on Tuesday. The government and the ruling coalition(連立) are increasingly confident it will be made law in the current session(今期中に).

At a Lower House plenary meeting Friday, the LDP, Komeito and Nippon Ishin voted down(～を否決する) a no-confidence motion against(～に対する不信任案) labor minister Katsunobu Kato, submitted by the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and other opposition parties in a bid to(～しようとして) block the committee’s vote on the bill.

The bill, regarded by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as the most important piece of legislation during the ongoing Diet session, calls for the implementation of equal pay for equal work to eliminate wage gaps between regular and nonregular employees, and the introduction of a cap on overtime hours(残業の上限).

It also includes the creation of a system in which some high-paid, highly skilled employees will be exempted from work hour regulations(労働時間規制から除外される) and therefore allowed to decide their hours by themselves, but instead receive no overtime wages. Through talks between the ruling camp(与党陣営) and some opposition parties including Nippon Ishin, a provision was added allowing those designated as such workers under the system to give up the status if they wish.

In talks with reporters, Fumio Kishida, chairman of the LDP’s Policy Research Council, underscored the significance(重要性を強調する) of the legislation, saying that it will help create “a society in which people can choose ways to work in line with their lifestyles.”

CDPJ Diet affairs chief Kiyomi Tsujimoto rejected this view, saying that the legislation could lead to an increase in deaths from overwork.

Yuichiro Tamaki, co-leader of the Democratic Party for the People, said the party wants to hold talks with the ruling side to remove the work hour regulation exemption system for highly skilled professionals from the bill.

Also on Friday, a draft basic law for preventing gambling addiction(ギャンブル依存症) cleared the Cabinet Committee of the lower chamber and then the full Lower House by a majority vote, with support from the LDP-Komeito coalition and opposition parties, including the Democratic Party for the People.

The same day, the Cabinet Committee began debates on legislation regarding the introduction and operation of casino resorts.

(My Essay)

It is a controversial law. Why? Seemingly it should be an ideal law for workers. Equal pay for equal work, a cap on overtime hours, decision of hours by workers themselves. Sadly, if it were not in Japan, this law would be understood differently. The Diet’s effort in passing the law in such a hurry implies a hidden agenda. Always the government and business world cooperate together.

In Japan, 40% of all regular workers take less than 40% of paid vacations. The causes are inefficient management by temperamental bosses, big workloads by “customers are always right” belief, and comradeship that lets them think it is immoral to take vacations. Among 16 OECD nations, Japan ranks in the lowest for productivity and second lowest for the rate of using paid vacations.

On the pretext of 30-year economic recession, Japanese companies hold revenues instead of allocating the profits to the workers. Companies impose workers to work overtime without pay. Both companies and workers believe slow workers are to blame. The Japanese business world builds up a society of “lifetime employment” where it is difficult for workers to transfer companies once a student chooses where to work after graduation. Transfer is almost impossible after the age of 40. It means that workers cannot refuse requests from companies, however unreasonable.

In such a country, it is obvious that companies use the law for their own sake. The reality is that the business world is the 3rd coalition party. If I were young, I would think about acquiring languages and skills to live and work abroad. I’m over 40. It’s too late. I think of surviving in this country as long as possible.