Japan Press Weekly

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2008 December 10 - 16 [LABOR]

Labor Ministry orders its local bureaus to give corporations guidance over illegal dismissals of contingent workers

In order to prevent large corporations from unilaterally dismissing temporary and fixed-term contract workers, the Labor Ministry on December 9 issued a circular to prefectural labor bureaus ordering them to direct companies to avoid illegal dismissals.

The circular encourages labor bureaus to make clear to employers that dismissals of workers should be appropriately carried out in compliance with the Labor Contract Law and court precedents even if they do not violate the Labor Standards Law.

It urges prefectural labor bureaus of the Labor Ministry to do the following:

- Inform employers that the Labor Contract Law bans the dismissal of temporary and fixed-term contract workers during the contract term without “inevitable reasons” as well as restricts their “dismissal” even after the end of the contract term;

- Swiftly collect information and issue warnings to employers when major dismissal plans are discovered in order to prevent any violations of related laws and standards;

- Preferentially respond to complaints filed by workers;

- Request employers to temporarily allow dismissed workers to remain in company dormitories and provide other supports for those who have lost a place to live after being dismissed.

Workers’ and the Japanese Communist Party’s struggles have forced the Labor Ministry to issue the latest notice, even though it was reluctant to instruct major corporations on the issue of non-regular workers’ dismissals.

JCP Chair Shii Kazuo on December 5 requested Prime Minister Aso Taro strengthen government directives to corporations to prevent them from carrying out major dismissals.