The three ruling parties and an opposition party on Thursday presented the government with a proposal for a 23 billion yen settlement package to resolve a 23-year-old dispute over Japan Railway companies’ refusal to hire unionized workers following the 1987 privatization of the state-run Japanese National Railways, party members said.
Receiving the proposal, which also asks JR companies to hire some 200 former JNR workers, transport minister Seiji Maehara said the sum, smaller than an originally proposed 28.7 billion yen, is a “realistic figure,” showing willingness to accept it.
The minister added that he has “heard some of the JR companies are planning to hire workers at their affiliated entities,” while Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama told reporters, “As many people have suffered for 23 years, we, the government, will have to seriously study the proposal.”
The privatization led the newly created companies to refuse to hire 1,047 workers, many of whom were members of the National Railway Workers Union, known as Kokuro.
The compromise deal will urge Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency, an organization that inherited debts from JNR, to pay some 23 billion yen as settlement money to former JNR workers.
Shinji Takahashi, Kokuro chief, said the proposal is acceptable and that he expects it to lead to the settlement of the decades-old dispute.
The three ruling parties and the New Komeito party had originally put the total figure at some 28.7 billion yen, which includes 1.8 billion yen to companies set up by those who were denied employment in the privatization, but trimmed the amount to keep it in line with the court’s past assessment of damages.
In December 2003, the Supreme Court rejected a call by the Central Labor Relations Commission, the government’s top labor mediation body, for the dismissed workers to be rehired.
It ruled that under the law, the Japan Railway companies created as a result of the privatization could not be held responsible for the improper labor practices of JNR.
The ruling coalition parties held a meeting with the government in January this year and agreed that the dispute should be resolved by March in consideration of the age of the dismissed workers.
According to Kokuro, the average age of the dismissed workers is now over 56, and 60 of them have already died.
TozenAdmin
Big firms approve pay raises
Carmakers, electrical manufacturers and other major domestic corporations on Wednesday offered to give their workers mandatory annual pay raises in response to their labor unions’ demand in this year’s wage hike talks.
Their replies were perceived as satisfactory to labor unions at these companies, most of which had demanded automatic annual pay raises–known as teiki-shokyu, or teisho–amid the protracted recession.
Their offer came at the peak of this year’s annual labor-management wage hike negotiations.
Meanwhile, the leading corporations’ responses to requests for greater seasonal bonuses–usually paid twice a year–were mostly disappointing to their organized labor.
For example, Toyota Motor Corp. declined to fully accept the union-demand level of bonuses, meaning it has refused to do so for two consecutive years. Such was also the case with responses from management at electrical manufacturers.
Earlier, Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) President Nobuaki Koga said teisho wage hikes should be treated as a lowest limit acceptable to member unions in this year’s wage hike bargaining.
Annual wage hikes negotiated between labor and management consist of a teisho automatic pay raise, and what is known as beisu appu–simply, be-a–or an increase in the base wage scales adjusted to the age of individual workers and the length of their continuous employment.
On Wednesday, Toyota offered to pay annual bonuses equivalent to five months’ basic pay plus 60,000 yen, compared with its union’s demand worth five months’ basic wages plus 100,000 yen. The fall below the union-demanded level for two straight years was the first since 1982, when Toyota Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Sales Co. were merged to create the current Toyota Motor Corp.
This seemed to reflect a projected operating loss to be incurred by Toyota and its massive recalls, according to analysts.
Meanwhile, Nissan Motor Co. fully accepted its union’s demand equivalent to five months’ base pay, and Honda Motor Co. 5.7 months’ basic wages.
Nissan also offered to increase its average monthly pay for young employees by 200 yen in consideration of the financial circumstances surrounding them nowadays, compared with its labor’s demand of 1,000 yen. The carmaker also pledged to give its workers a teisho automatic pay raise.
Prior to this year’s annual wage hike bargaining, Rengo said it would strive to gain teisho hikes, instead of demanding be-a increases in the base wage scales laid down by corporations in each industry. With Rengo’s basic wage hike policy, labor unions at most major corporations demanded only teisho raises.
In the initial stage of this year’s negotiations, management at major corporations took a hard-line stance, even hinting they would refuse to give workers teisho pay hikes. In the end, however, corporate executives accepted the labor side’s demand for teisho raises in the belief that doing so is necessary to maintain their employees’ morale, according to a Mitsubishi Electric Corp. official in charge of labor affairs.
Another probable factor behind their offer was the slight sign of an economic recovery, as shown by an improvement in industrial production, an analyst said.
Last year, some electrical manufacturers imposed a freeze on their teisho pay raises in the wake of wage hike bargaining. As circumstances stand today, however, no major corporation is seeking to do so.
But this does not necessarily mean that the long-running practice of labor and management treating teisho increases as a given will go unchallenged. During this year’s wage hike talks, in fact, management at some top-ranking corporations told their unions that they wanted to reconsider the amount of teisho hikes in future negotiations. This shows corporate executives likely will continue discussions with labor over the propriety of treating teisho raises as a matter of course, according to analysts.
Local suffrage for foreigners in sight, but opposition grows stronger
For Chang Yooka, there is hardly a moment in her daily life that she feels she is a third-generation Korean.
But the 27-year-old faces that reality every time an election takes place in her hometown because she does not have the right to vote in any election.
Chang was born to Korean parents in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture. She hardly speaks Korean and most of her friends from school or work are Japanese.
Unlike her parents or grandparents who all suffered bullying and various forms of discrimination in Japanese society because of their nationality, Chang spent her childhood without facing such problems and had no trouble finding a job.
“I’ve had few bad experiences as a result of being Korean,” said Chang, who now lives in Tokyo’s Taito Ward and works at Japanese game software developer Konami Corp. She even started studying Korean at college in the hope of learning more about her ethnic identity.
“The only thing that still differentiates us from Japanese people is local suffrage,” she said.
But she and others like her may be granted the right to vote in elections for local governments and assembly members soon, or in a couple of years at the latest, as the government of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama is eager to enact a law to extend local suffrage to permanent foreign residents.
It remains not clear, however, whether the government will submit legislation on the matter to parliament or if it would be passed during the current Diet session through June 16 because of an increasingly fierce backlash from conservative lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition camps.
Kim Jong Soo, an active advocate of granting local suffrage to foreigners and a third-generation Korean who headed the Korean Youth Association in Japan until very recently, said Koreans and other permanent foreign residents in Japan deserve the right to vote in view of the fact that they have long fulfilled their duty to pay taxes.
“We’re talking about local elections not national elections,” said the 33-year-old who now serves as a supervisor for the Tokyo-based organization. “We’re certainly interested in how our residential areas are managed and we should have the right to take part in local politics.”
“If Japan makes this come true, it will be a strong message to the international community that the country does not ignore foreign residents, whose number already exceeds 2.2 million,” he said.
The issue first drew attention in 1995 when the Supreme Court declared that the Constitution does not prohibit granting permanent foreign residents the right to vote in local elections in order to have their views reflected in local administration.
Since 1998, Hatoyama’s Democratic Party of Japan and a few other parties, including the New Komeito party and the Japanese Communist Party, have submitted related bills in vain to the Diet.
Hatoyama and DPJ Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa, the kingmaker in the ruling party, are among those strongly advocating the legislation.
Hatoyama expressed his eagerness to submit a bill to extend local suffrage to foreigners earlier this year, noting that this year marks the centenary of Japan’s annexation of the Korean Peninsula in 1910.
Opposition lawmakers claim, however, that Ozawa, who is in charge of the DPJ’s election strategy, has the ulterior motive of capturing the support of permanent foreign residents in Japan, who numbered over 910,000 as of 2008.
Of the total, 490,000 foreigners hold regular permanent residency status, with Chinese constituting the largest group followed by Brazilians and Filipinos.
The remaining 420,000 have special permanent residency, which is granted to those from the Korean Peninsula and Taiwan who have lived in Japan since before the end of World War II and lost Japanese nationality through the San Francisco Peace Treaty, as well as their descendants. Of those special permanent residents, 99 percent are Koreans.
The planned legislation faces a major stumbling block in Shizuka Kamei, leader of the minor conservative People’s New Party, one of the DPJ’s two coalition partners.
Kamei, an outspoken political bigwig, has said the envisioned law could fan ethnic sentiment among Koreans and lead to conflict with Japanese, and that anyone seeking the right to vote should apply for naturalization.
In Japan, nationality is based on parentage not location of birth and those who obtain foreign nationality automatically lose Japanese citizenship.
But Chang, who greatly values her ethnic roots and identity, and does not hesitate to use her real name, has no intention of renouncing her Korean citizenship in exchange for local suffrage.
Some members of the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party have also stepped up their opposition to hamper the enactment of such a law.
“We are strongly concerned that the results of local elections, especially in a major city or prefecture such as Osaka, could influence national politics,” said Seiichiro Murakami, a senior LDP lawmaker who heads a party group opposed to such legislation.
Murakami and other opponents have expressed concern that Korean voters could sway the course of long-standing territorial disputes between Japan and South Korea over islands such as Tsushima and Takeshima.
Some opponents argue that if Koreans gain voting rights, they could move to Japan-controlled Tsushima, for example, and elect local assembly members claiming that the island is South Korean territory.
“That’s such an extreme assumption,” Kim said, arguing that it is based on the prejudiced idea that foreigners are some sort of menace to Japanese society.
The National Association of Chairpersons of Prefectural Assemblies has also adopted a cautious stance on granting local suffrage to foreign residents.
It adopted a resolution in January calling on the government to listen to the organization’s views on the issue, which it claims “concerns the foundation of democracy” and has “a significant bearing on the administration of local municipalities.”
Supporters maintain that many countries in Europe have introduced some form of local suffrage for foreigners.
Murakami of the LDP said, however, “Europe has historically functioned in a different framework and that should not be applied to Japan.”
Advocates also maintain that South Korea adopted a legal amendment in 2005 to allow permanent foreign residents aged 19 or older to vote in local elections.
Although opponents counter that the amendment affects only around 100 Japanese residents living in South Korea, Kim said it signifies a radical shift for a country often described as “nationalistic.”
“Japan will not be able to buck the growing international trend,” he said, suggesting that the time may come soon for Japan to eventually allow dual citizenship.
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/features/news/20100317p2g00m0dm015000c.html
Gov’t picks 39 groups for free language lessons for needy foreigners
The education ministry has picked 39 groups and organizations across the country to hold free Japanese-language classes for foreign children who cannot afford to attend international schools due to financial difficulties, ministry officials said Monday.
The groups, including nonprofit organizations, in 14 prefectures will hold a total of 42 Japanese-language classes at local community centers and other public facilities in fiscal 2010 from next month with the aim of helping such children go to public schools where tuition is much cheaper.
The state will provide 20 million yen to each of the organizations named by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
The program was launched as part of the ministry’s efforts to extend language support for students who have been hit hard by the economic downturn, including Brazilians of Japanese ancestry, between fiscal 2009 and 2011. In fiscal 2009, 32 organizations were picked for 34 classes.
Prada, manager fail to come to settlement in harassment case
Prada Japan’s senior retail manager said Saturday she had failed to reach a settlement with the Italian fashion label in a dispute alleging the company harassed her and other employees.
The manager, Rina Bovrisse, told The Japan Times she will prepare to take further legal action against the company.
The case was handled by an industrial tribunal, a streamlined system for resolving labor disputes without trial. If no settlement is reached through the tribunal, the parties involved can opt to proceed with a civil suit to seek a court ruling.
“I am planning to collect more witnesses and file a lawsuit as soon as possible,” Bovrisse said, adding this process may take a month or two.
In December, Bovrisse, who alleged Prada Japan CEO Davide Sesia and Human Resources Manager Hiroyuki Takahashi discriminated against employees based on their appearance, filed a labor complaint with the Tokyo District Court demanding compensation for emotional distress and cancellation of her demotion and leave.
Bovrisse, who has been on involuntary leave since November, was notified Saturday by Prada Japan, the local unit of the world-famous brand, that she will be fired Monday on the grounds that she made false accusations against the company.
Bovrisse has alleged that Sesia asked her to “eliminate” about 15 shop managers and assistant managers he described as being “old, fat, ugly, disgusting or not having the Prada look” last May. Most of them chose to quit after the human resources manager issued transfer orders that amounted to demotions, she said.
In the complaint, Bovrisse alleged that she was verbally abused regarding her appearance by Takahashi, who delivered Sesia’s message to her, and that the company forced its employees to purchase Prada products with their own money.
Prada Japan and Prada Milan headquarters have denied Bovrisse’s allegations.
Uninsured matter of death for 33
At least 33 people died in 17 prefectures in 2009 after not visiting doctors because they lacked national health insurance, a private survey showed Thursday.
The 33 stopped being covered by the national health insurance scheme after failing to pay insurance premiums due to financial difficulties, the Japan Federation of Democratic Medical Institutions said, referring to its survey of member institutions across the country.
The 33 comprised 27 men and six women. Of them, 23 were uninsured, six had invalid health insurance certificates and four were required to pay a medical bill in full before applying for reimbursement minus the deductible. Eighteen of them were unemployed and nine were irregular workers.
In one case, a 39-year-old man in Nagano Prefecture who died of lung cancer refrained from visiting a hospital due to his lack of a health insurance certificate, belatedly visiting a hospital two months after becoming aware of his cancer symptoms.
“The data show the severe situation of low-income people who are facing difficulties in receiving medical services at a time when the economic slump has exacerbated poverty and income disparities,” a federation official said.
The survey also found another 10 people who possessed health insurance certificates had died in six prefectures after refraining from visiting a hospital because they were unable to pay the medical expenses required.
Detainees staging hunger strike
A hunger strike staged by inmates at the West Japan Immigration Center [in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture] entered its fifth day Friday with protesters demanding improved living conditions and protection of their rights, sources said.
The 70 inmates, nearly all the men held at the facility, began fasting on Monday, center officials and supporters of inmates said.
Their main demand was the provisional release of an ill inmate who was not receiving proper treatment within the facility, supporters said.
Applications for provisional release, usually granted out of humanitarian considerations, have often gone unanswered at the center since last year, they said.
An official at the center said the immigration bureau had not changed the way it grants provisional releases.
Toyota workers here get bonus
Toyota Motor Corp. workers are likely to secure bonuses equivalent to at least five months’ wages for this year, sources involved with this spring’s annual labor-management pay negotiations said Thursday.
The Toyota union is seeking annual bonuses worth five months’ wages plus ¥100,000 in this year’s “shunto” talks, while management continues refusing to accept the demand in full as the automaker is caught in serious difficulties amid a series of global recalls, they said.
Toyota management earlier indicated it would grant bonuses amounting to less than five months’ wages but has changed its stance as the firm’s unconsolidated operating loss turned out to be smaller than anticipated.
In addition, Toyota executives consider it necessary to respond to the union’s demand to some extent so employees and management can work together to overcome the current difficulties and regain consumer confidence, the sources said.
Prada accused of maltreatment
Boss wanted ‘old, fat, ugly’ out: manager
A senior manager at Prada Japan has filed a legal complaint against the Italian fashion label, accusing the company of harassment and discrimination based on appearance and alleging it maltreated other employees in the past.
Last May, Prada Japan CEO Davide Sesia visited some of the 40 Prada shops in Japan with Rina Bovrisse, its senior retail manager. Afterward, he asked her to “eliminate” about 15 shop managers and assistant managers he described as being “old, fat, ugly, disgusting or not having the Prada look,” Bovrisse said in a recent interview with The Japan Times.
Tokyo-based lawyer Reiko Shiratori, who specializes mainly in workplace harassment cases, said it would be illegal even for a luxury fashion house to order the dismissal, demotion or unfavorable transfer of a worker on the grounds of physical appearance because that isn’t the only relevant job requirement.
Bovrisse said she is taking this opportunity to raise the issue of harassment against women in the workplace because she wants to improve their working environment.
70 immigration detainees on hunger strike
Fast in Osaka tied to denial of release: activists
At least 70 detainees at the West Japan Immigration Control Center, which has long been criticized by human rights groups and Diet members, have been on a hunger strike since Monday, center officials and volunteers helping them confirmed Thursday.
“Around 70 foreigners began a hunger strike Monday night because they want to be released on a temporary basis,” Norifumi Kishida, an official at the center, said Thursday morning. The center, in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture, is providing food but they are refusing to eat, he said.
Hiromi Sano, a human rights activist involved with immigration issues who has been meeting with detainees over the past few days, said some hunger strikers have applied for refugee status.
“They are demanding to know why their applications for release from the center were rejected, even though their refugee claims are being reviewed administratively or judicially, with support from lawyers and legal assistance workers,” she said.
Reports of detainee abuse and harsh conditions at the West Japan Immigration Control Center go back at least a decade. According to an investigation by Kyodo News, 23 detainees at the center had attempted suicide between 2000 and 2004.