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June
2006
Diet Enacts Law To Stem Sex
Discrimination At Work
The parliament enacted a revision to the Equal Employment Opportunities
Law for Men and Women on Thursday which includes steps to curb sex
discrimination in the workplace. Under the law approved by a plenary
session of the House of Representatives, to take effect next April,
employers will be banned from using indirect forms of sex discrimination
and from giving disadvantageous treatment to employees who became pregnant
or give birth. The law bans three forms of indirect discrimination --
namely, setting criteria for hiring of employees based on height and
weight, hiring ''career track'' employees with the prerequisite that they
can be transferred to anywhere in Japan, and looking at past transfer
records in deciding on employees' promotions -- when those conditions are
not related to the nature of the work. Labor unions are critical of
limiting the instances of indirect discrimination to these three forms,
however, saying the definitions could be taken as meaning that other
instances are not discrimination. The revisions mark the first amendment
to the law since 1997. The law took effect in 1986. Before the revision,
the law banned employers from terminating employment for women for the
reason of pregnancy, childbirth or taking maternity leave. Under the
revised law, they will be additionally prohibited from treating such
employees unfavorably, such as assigning them to a different section,
downgrading them to part-timers or temporary workers, or urging them to
quit. Employment termination during pregnancy or within a year after
giving birth will be nullified unless employers can prove that the
decision was not because of pregnancy or childbirth. The revised law also
includes toughening measures against sexual harassment. Specifically, it
includes measures to deal with male victims of sexual harassment and makes
it mandatory for employers to take appropriate measures to prevent sexual
harassment. (Kyodo News, June 15, 2006)
Diet Enacts Law To Prioritize
Consumers In Intl Disputes
The Diet enacted a law Thursday revising a century-old framework on the
application of laws to give priority to consumers and employees in
resolving cross-border disputes that may involve Internet transactions
with overseas entities or the termination of labor contracts by
foreign-owned companies. The legislation, already approved by the House of
Councillors, was unanimously adopted by the House of Representatives. It
is expected to put into force as early as next January. The name and
contents of the 1898 framework, the Law Concerning Application of Laws in
General, were extensively changed. The new law features a provision that
lets consumers or employees resolve disputes through the laws in the
countries they reside, making it easier for them to file lawsuits with
courts in their own countries. The measure is designed to protect
consumers and workers who tend to be vulnerable in the globalizing
economy. (Kyodo news, June 15, 2006)
August
2005
Japan
Preparing English-language Versions Of Key Laws
The government is translating more than 10 key laws such as the Commercial
Code and Penal Code into English as part of its efforts to help increase
foreign direct investment in Japan and facilitate cross-border trade. In
parallel, the government also plans to translate 200 more laws into
English over three years beginning next April 1, including ones governing
corporate activity and protection of intellectual property rights,
government officials said. The move came in response to complaints about
the lack of reliable unified translations of laws. So far, government
ministries and agencies, as well as business corporations, have used their
own translations. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, August 14, 2005)
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