The Law Doesn’t Matter?
Well, you finally made it to Japan. Ready to take on that new job, full of enthusiasm and hope in a new and certainly different country. The pay is not bad either, got those student loans to pay back, maybe even save enough for a down payment on a residence back in the home country, but why worry about that now? The new contract has been signed, work has started, first paycheck due pretty soon. No major worries, a few minor glitches here and there, but nothing a little persistence can’t take care of right?. Even beginning to get some of the local lingo down, at least enough to make wishes, hopes, and dreams known to that certain someone. Yeah! Things are looking pretty good.
Well they were for thousands of people just like you who have joined the labor force in Japan, but unfortunately found the workaday world here not exactly as they expected it to be. No worse than that, for many thousands of Japanese and non Japanese employees alike, things are downright miserable.
While it is not possible to detail each individual’s Japan experience, and everyone’s is as different and varied as the number of people on earth, this is becoming more and more a common scenario here:
After working the job for the first month, your first pay installment is deposited into your bank account, but it is not quite as much as you expected, in fact it is a lot less than you thought you would get. Why? What happened!? After a couple checks of things you find that there were some deductions made that were, well surprising to say the least. Taxes, health care, insurance, rent, well ,those were maybe shocks, but what can you say, we all have to pay those things, right? But what is this ‘penalty for being late’ or ‘deduction for bad evaluation’ or an arbitrary ‘deduction for work attitude’ or even worse, just non payment for overtime worked, paid holidays, days off for being sick, and so on. ‘This is unfair!’ you say? You are angry, and you are right. The labor laws of Japan would tend to agree with you. ‘So what is this? Don’t employers obey the law in this country?’ The answer is, well, they sometimes do when it suits them and don’t just as often, and the cases of them not obeying labor laws and even basic human rights laws, along with the current buzzword; Power Harassment, is growing daily here. Especially in those enterprises that employ foreigners, the newly hired, contract workers, temporary workers, and day laborers. Once you have signed the contract and started working, they have you.
If you find yourself in such a situation what can you do? Just get your employer to obey the law! Well, it should be that simple, but it in fact is far more difficult to get an employer to uphold the basic laws of this land as many are finding out daily.
Suppose you have done what you could, begged, cried, pleaded, even threatened you boss, and to no avail, or worse, found yourself branded as a troublemaker or even fired, just for asking that promises made be kept laws obeyed, and contracts mutually signed and agreed upon, upheld. What are your options then?
Well thankfully there are several.
You may have noticed their signs along the roads. This government bureau has offices covering the entire country. No matter where you live, you will have one of these that can be gone to in your area for assistance. It is their job to enforce the non-criminal labor related laws of Japan. You can go to them and file a complaint against your employer. Fine, you might say, I will just do that all should be taken care of right? Wrong. They may be sympathetic to your grievance, if they feel your case has merit, may decide to do something or may not. Persistence seems to pay off, but it most likely depends on the whim of the government staff worker you talk to. If you present them with enough evidence they can easily verify and take action on (remember they are a government office and not inclined to work very hard) and you make things as easy as possible for them, they MAY contact your employer on your behalf and ASK that the employer comply with labor laws. The employer then has the choice to comply or refuse to. Most of the time the employer just ignores the request from the labor office because there is no penalty for not complying with the law. ‘What?’ you may be asking yourself, ‘There is no penalty for not obeying the labor laws in Japan?’ The answer, in a nutshell is, no there isn’t, at least not at this stage.
If the employer refuses to comply with a request from the labor office, your next step, and one the labor office will be sure to make perfectly clear to you is:
For most people, and especially non Japanese the court system here can seem pretty intimidating and overwhelming for good reason, but it is not really if you know what to expect. Hiring a lawyer to guide you through the minefield is the route recommended by most, but lawyers are expensive, 500,000 yen just to engage their services IF they decide they will take on your case. There are not enough of them,and many won’t take on small claims cases because it is sometimes tedious, and not worth their time. They have bigger more profitable fish to fry than your employer. If you do however decide to go this route here are some pointers.
If you do decide to go after them through the court there are some things working in your favor in Japan. The court system was supposedly revamped several years ago to allow more people access to the court without the need to hire a lawyer. It is possible to represent yourself. Since most correspondence is done in writing with the court, it is not necessary to engage a lawyer for all sorts of disputes. If you need help writing or filling out the appropriate court documents, a Legal Scrivener (shihou shoushi) can assist you for a fee much less than a lawyer would charge. You can also write the briefs yourself and have them translated by a legal secretary. If you need translation during court appearances, the court is usually more than willing to allow for this, and will work with you to make sure you understand and can comply with all the procedures.
If a full blown law suit is not necessary, you just want to recover lost wages, or be paid what is owed you according to the law, you are in luck with these two procedures:
Shougaku Soshou. (Small Claims Suit) for amounts under 600,000 yen. Court fee is 1%. 600,000 yen would be 6,000 yen plus couple hundred yen for stamps. It is simpler, takes about a month, costs less, is a one time appearance in court. You can represent yourself. When only money is involved and the case is simple. It can be done up to a maximum of 10 times in a year. Is applied in Kani Saiban (Summary Court).If you get judgement and they still won’t pay, you do a Shikou Testuzuki, (Shougaku Soushou Saiken Shikkou tetsuzuki). This cost another 4,000 yen and you can seize their property for payment. The procedure can be done by a Legal Scrivener (Shihou Shoushi) and you just appear in court. It is conducted in a closed room (not open court) around a table using ordinary (non legal language) Japanese. A legal secretary or translator is allowed to accompany the plaintiff if needed.
Rodo Shimpan (Labor Related Three Strike Suit)
The ministry of justice has to their credit recognized that there are an awful lot of labor/employment related disputes and has created this procedure starting from April 2007. This involves only monetary judgements, a maximum of three times in court and not to extend more than three months. It is similar to the Shougaku Soshou in terms and fees.
There are several around, all catering to various needs and unique situations people find themselves in in Japan. Ideally they are there to work for, and protect the rights of the members of the union. In reality they are all quite different, each having its own special areas of focus or expertise depending on the union officials in charge. If you join one, and support it by you dues and membership for an extended period, they MAY take up your grievance and assist you with the negotiations and legal matters related to your case. Most likely they won’t though, as most only take on cases that are easily won with the least amount of effort on their part. They tend to take a dim view of the person who gets into trouble and comes to them for assistance, that is not what they are there for, according to them. Most seem to be a sort of life insurance policy, only collect-able after death or illness, contracted for during times of good health and prosperity. Don’t count on them coming to your aid after you get into trouble, you will most likely be shown the door.
The Law Does In Fact Matter
Most people find that taking matters into their own hands is the only way to get satisfaction in resolving these kinds of disputes. Japan is unfortunately going through social and economic period in which employers are increasingly taking advantage of employees by giving them the short shrift when it comes to wages and benefits to improve their own bottom line. In this, laws and human rights are being cast aside in the pursuit of profits. Japan has always had a shady history of periods during which the powerful took advantage of the weak for their own benefit. This was supposed to have been corrected by the constitution imposed on Japan after World War II. The laws and court system were established with this purpose in mind and to create a stable democracy. When all is said and done, the law does indeed matter, but only if citizens, and yes even legal guests, understand their rights and exercise them lawfully.
