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1. Application of Labor Acts and regulations to foreign nationals
As a general rule, Japanese Acts concerning
labor apply to all employees in Japan, regardless of nationality. It means
that the Labor Standards Act, the Minimum Wages Act, the Industrial Safety
and Health Act, the Workmen's Accident Compensation Insurance Act, the
Employment Security Act and others also apply to foreigners.
The Labor Standards Act stipulates
that the employer shall not engage in discriminatory treatment with respect
to wages, working hours or other working conditions by reason of nationality
or other status of any worker. (Article 3, Labor Standards Act)
2. The Principles of Labor Contracts
In the past, there have been many problems
such as wages not being paid as promised or a penalty being deducted from
wages on retirement. To prevent these troubles relating to labor contracts,
the Labor Standards Act stipulates the following matters;
[New Point]
"Labor Contract Act" was enforced in March, 2008.
It is very important Act, please check it.
(1) Working conditions must be stated clearly.
The employer shall clearly state
the working conditions when a labor contract is
drawn up. The following matters shall be written and
handed to the employee.
a. The period of the labor contract.
b. The working place and job duties.
c. Existence of overtime work.
d. The time at which work begins and at which work ends, breaks,
days off, and holiday and leave.
e. The amount of wages, the methods of computation and payment, the
date of closing accounts and of payment.
f. Matters pertaining to retirement.
The employee may immediately cancel the labor
contract, if the working conditions as clearly stated differ form
actual fact. (Article 15)
Therefore, it is advisable for the employee
to obtain a written contract, rather than an oral one. When the contract
is made, the employee must examine the contents of the contract.
In cases where employees cannot understand their contracts
written in Japanese, it may be possible to have them translated into their
own languages. It is also desirable to check the details of the rules of
employment which are laid down by the company.
(2) A contract violating the Labor Standards Act is invalid.
A labor contract which does not meet the
standards of this Act is invalid with respect to such portion. In such
a case the sections which are invalid are governed by the standards set
forth in the Labor Standards Act. (Article 13)
(3) Period of Contract
a. Labor contracts shall be made for a period of no longer than three years
except for those without a definite period. However, a contract may exceed
three years wherein the period for completing a specified project is determined.
b. It is also permissible to draw up a contract of up to five years
in cases where an employee has highly specialized knowledge/ skills, or,
employee is aged 60 years or above. (Article 14) However, an employee
with a contract for a defined period (other than those who were contracted
for a specific period to complete certain projects, or who fall into item
b. ) may resign at any time after fulfilling the first contract year, by
submitting his/her request of leave to the employer.(Article 137)
With regards to the extension, renewal, or
cancellation of a contract with employees of defined working periods, employers
must clearly state the basis of the decision made.
(4) Ban on Pre-determined Indemnity
An employer cannot make a contract which fixes in advance either a sum payable to the employer for a breach of contract or an amount of indemnity for damages. (Article 16)
For example, matters such as the following cannot
be fixed in the contract: the amount of damages for breach of contract
because an employee quits before his/her contract expiration date; compensation
payable to the employer if an employee damages machines, etc.
However the employee is still under an obligation
to pay damages if he/she inflicts a loss on the firm because of his/ her
serious mistake.
(5) Ban on Offsets Against Advances
An employer should not offset monthly wages
against advances of credit made as a condition for work. (Article 17)
(6) Ban on Compulsory Savings
An employer cannot require a contract for
compulsory savings. However, it is possible for the employer to take charge of
employees' savings entrusted to the employer by the employees. But the
employer should conclude a written agreement with them and submit it to
the Labor Standards Inspection Office. (Article 18)
3. Rules of Employment
(1) The Rules of Employment
Rules of employment stipulate working conditions
and office regulations. Any company which employs 10 or more workers on
a steady basis must provide such rules of employment, and submit them to
the Labor Standards Inspection Office. The company is also required to
make these regulations known to the employees.(Article 106) It is
therefore desirable for employers to do so in a language that their employees
understand, if they do not understand Japanese.(Article 92, Labor Contract
Act 12)
Rules of employment shall not infringe any
Act and any collective agreement. A labor contract, in which the working
conditions are inferior to the rules of employment standards, shall be
invalid. In such a case, the parts of the contract, which are invalid,
shall be governed by the rules of employment standards.
(2) Items of Rules of Employment
The following items must be stated in the
rules of employment;
a. Matters pertaining to the methods of determination, computation and payment of wages (excluding extraordinary wages), the date of closing accounts and of payment and increases in wages,
b. Matters pertaining to the time at which work begins and a which work ends; rest periods; rest days and leave; and matters pertaining to the change in shifts,
c. Matters pertaining to retirement (including reasons for dismissal).
Others are;
i) In the event that there are stipulations for retirement allowances,
extraordinary wages and safety and health, matters pertaining
to such items,
ii) In the event that there are stipulations for having employees
bear the cost of food and other such expenses, matters pertaining to such
items.
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