Japan Press Weekly

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2022 February 23 - March 1 [LABOR]

Osaka mayor vows not to repeat violations of labor union law

The Osaka City government led by mayor Matsui Ichiro, who also heads the right-wing “Nippon Ishin no Kai” party, on February 25 presented to the Osaka City Office Workers’ Union a document pledging to comply with the Osaka Labor Relation Commission’s order to abide by the Labor Union Act and negotiate with the union on the issue of the location of the union office.

In the presentation, union chair Iwaki Kazue demanded that Mayor Matsui keep his promise and negotiate with the union in a sincere manner.

It was 2012 when the dispute regarding the location of the union office took place. Then Osaka City Mayor Hashimoto Toru, who served as the Ishin party head at that time, unilaterally instructed the union, a member union of the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren), to remove its office from the city hall without holding talks with union representatives. Since then, the city government has continued to refuse to hold negotiations with the union on this matter.

In October 2015, the Central Labor Relations Commission recognized the city government’s refusal to negotiate with the union as an unfair labor practice. However, the city authorities did not respond.

In January 2019, the Osaka Labor Relations Commission again issued an order in support of the union claiming that the city administration’s rejection of collective bargaining violates the Labor Union Act. In response, then Mayor Yoshimura Hirofumi, who now serves as the Osaka Governor, filed the complaint with the Osaka District Court to demand the nullification of the labor commission’s order.

The Osaka High Court on February 4 upheld a lower court decision and ruled that the city government’s refusal to respond to the union’s negotiation request as a labor law violation. As the city authority finally gave up on appealing to the Supreme Court, this court ruling has been finalized.

Past related article:
> Osaka City's refusal to hold talks with city workers' union ruled unfair labor practice [July 30, 2021]