Tag - labor

 
 

LABOR

EDITORIALS
May 10, 2015
Much-needed probe into overwork
Analyzing the causes and impact of overwork is a long-overdue step, but much more needs to be done.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Apr 26, 2015
'Zero Overtime Bill' is the thin end of the wedge for workers' rights
Although you may feel this amendment to the Labor Standards Law has nothing to do with you, the net will be cast wider and before you know it we will all be caught up in it.
EDITORIALS
Apr 14, 2015
Settling disputes over unfair firings
If the government introduces a new system that allows the use of financial compensation to settle legal disputes over unfair dismissals, it should ensure that workers are not placed at a disadvantage.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 13, 2015
Abe camp's push for white-collar merit pay seen as no-overtime wages ploy
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration submitted a revised Labor Standards Law to the Diet earlier this month that would allow firms to exempt well-paid skilled workers from work-hour regulations — the so-called white-collar exemption system, which would effectively do away with overtime pay.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Mar 25, 2015
Japan sees progress on sexual harassment, but some still don't get it
On the one hand we have the legal framework to tackle sexual harassment. On the other, awareness of the issue remains sorely lacking.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues
Mar 22, 2015
University teachers in Japan work under the shadow of a falling ax
For most teachers, their job is more than an economic exchange of time for money — it is a vocation. Concern for students' educational development is genuine, as is a deep belief in the value and importance of education, and a regard for the institution's reputation and welfare.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Feb 25, 2015
Under Japanese law, breaks are sacred and standby counts as work
If your employer is keeping you waiting long hours on standby without paying you and calling it 'break time,' they are breaking the law.
EDITORIALS
Feb 24, 2015
Labor law needs sharper teeth
The labor ministry should devise more effective measures to be taken against 'black companies' and more strictly enforce existing labor laws to halt abusive labor practices.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 18, 2015
U.S. West Coast ports reopen as labor secretary arrives for talks
U.S. West Coast ports that were closed to incoming cargo vessels during the holiday weekend reopened in full on Tuesday as Labor Secretary Tom Perez arrived in San Francisco seeking to broker a settlement ending months of shipping disruptions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 17, 2015
Asian supply lines hit by U.S. West Coast ports dispute
A labor dispute at ports on the U.S. West Coast is disrupting supply chains across the Pacific, forcing some Asian exporters to resort to costly air freight and pushing up shipping rates as more freighters are caught up in long lines to dock.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 16, 2015
Who benefits from the new overtime pay system?
On Feb. 13, a Labor Policy Council sub-committee submitted to the labor ministry a report with suggestions for a bill to revise the labor standards law. The revision, which the ministry plans to submit to the next regular Diet session, applies to the work of skilled white collar professionals and will allow them to 'work in a manner that demonstrates their achievements' more effectively, which is another way of saying that employers will no longer be required to pay these workers overtime for extra hours on the job, which in turn means that employers cannot be accused of pressuring them to work overtime for no pay, a system popularly known as saabisu zangyo, or 'free overtime.'
EDITORIALS
Feb 10, 2015
Wrong way to import workers
If Japan needs foreign workers to fill its manpower needs, the government should consider a new system of accepting such labor on a longer-term basis rather than under the guise of an technical internship program.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Feb 8, 2015
Is Australia ready to import Japan’s revolving-door-style politics?
Australian politics has worked itself into a frenzy. Prime Minister Tony Abbott, after ridiculing the previous Labor government for its public infighting, faces a leadership challenge from inside his own Liberal Party.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?