Japan Press Weekly

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2010 October 13 - 19 [LABOR]

Daikin’s disposable use of labor is unacceptable: JCP Yamashita

Citing the fact that the world’s second largest air-conditioner manufacturer Daikin Industries, Ltd, at its Sakai Plants in Osaka dismissed 200 workers in late August due to expiration of their contracts while hiring 200 new workers at the same time, Yamashita said, “Although there is no reduction in production, Daikin dismisses a certain amount of workers and hires the same number of workers under short term contracts. Is such a labor practice acceptable?”

Prime Minister Kan Naoto replied, “Generally speaking, such treatment is unreasonable.”

Those laid-off workers were directly employed by Daikin with 30 month contracts after the Osaka Labor Bureau instructed the company to end its illegal use of temporary workers as independent contractors. One of those workers worked at Daikin for 18 years under the illegal practice of “disguised contract work” and was dismissed.

Daikin chooses to use workers on a less than 36-month contracts to avoid complying with the law that requires employers to hire temps who have worked for more than 36 months as full-time employees.

When Yamashita asked, “Will the government leave the issue as it is?,” Labor Minister Hosokawa Ritsuo said, “Of course the government knows something has to be done, so we submitted to the Diet the bill to revise the Worker Dispatch Law.”

Regarding the government bill, Yamashita asked whether or not a company which illegally uses temporary workers should be required to hire such workers as full-time workers. Hosoka answered, “Creating a legal obligation is difficult.”

Yamashita stated that a drastic revision of the law that will open the way for contingent workers to become regular workers is necessary, and that the revised law should oblige company using temporary workers to employ them as full-time workers in the case of the illegal use of temporary workers.