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LAWS

Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 15, 2016
Japan's dispatched ALTs struggle without a safety net
In late March, 65 English assistant language teachers, or ALTs, effectively lost their jobs after dispatch agency Interac lost a contract with the Sapporo Board of Education.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 31, 2016
Study faults Japan for inaction on modern-day slavery
Almost 46 million people are trapped in modern-day slavery, two-thirds of them in the Asia-Pacific region, according to a study released Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 28, 2016
The vagina on trial: more absurd than obscene
Though the obscenity trial of the artist known as Rokudenashiko — real name Megumi Igarashi — ended earlier this month with a conviction on one of her charges, we haven't heard the last of her. She plans to appeal the verdict, which is good news for the press and the public, since few court trials...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
May 22, 2016
Do Japan's porn actresses and actors have labor rights?
An engrossing five-hour defense of the adult-movie business by its practitioners fails to tell the full story.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 22, 2016
Teacher seeks advice on sick leave and contract nonrenewal
A reader writes to Lifelines about difficulties he is dealing with at work.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Apr 24, 2016
Shakai hoken shake-up will open up pensions for some but close door on benefits for others
Law will enable some workers to join the employees' health and pension insurance system but will legally freeze out many more.
EDITORIALS
Apr 16, 2016
Laboring to reduce overtime
The Abe administration needs to find an effective way to reduce Japan's chronically long work hours.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 30, 2016
Landmark new laws put suicide prevention front and center
In what was hailed as a landmark development, the Diet passed an amendment last week to the suicide prevention law for the first time since its enactment 10 years ago — this time requiring local-level authorities to take preventive action.
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2016
IBM Japan loses lawsuit over faulty dismissal
The Tokyo District Court nullifies the dismissals of five IBM Japan employees and orders the company to pay their lost salaries following another 'abuse of power.'
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Mar 27, 2016
Bearded train driver, out-of-pocket teacher and CV faker: How would they fare in court?
A look at three shiny new news items from the gossip columns that take on a different sheen when examined under the piercing light of labor law.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 22, 2016
New security laws take effect next Tuesday but SDF not ready, defense chief says
The Self-Defense Forces won't accept any new roles after the security laws take effect March 29 unless the legal details are in place, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani says.
EDITORIALS
Mar 13, 2016
Equal pay for equal work is fair
The Abe administration is finally trying to address the wage gap between regular and irregular workers.
EDITORIALS
Feb 26, 2016
Don't weaken civilian control of SDF
The Abe administration must resist efforts by uniformed officers to gain even more power in setting SDF plans.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Feb 25, 2016
Supreme Court, Abe battle over judicial independence
The Supreme Court is locked in a war with the Abe administration over the independence of the judicial branch.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 23, 2016
Defense minister stresses civilians still have control over Japanese military
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on Tuesday downplayed a news report that some senior officers in the Self-Defense Forces are demanding a bigger role than the civilians in drafting the next three-year overall operation plan.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Feb 23, 2016
Forced labor allegations and abuses continue to dog Japan's foreign trainee program
Tang Xili came to Japan in 2013, hoping to earn enough in three years to build a new home for her daughter. Instead, she ended up in a labor union shelter after leaving an employer she says owes her about ¥3.5 million in unpaid wages.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LABOR PAINS
Jan 24, 2016
Graduates needn't be hostages to advance contracts
For university seniors who have pledged to work for a firm after graduation, although there is no legal compulsion, there is social and ethical pressure not to back out of the deal.

Longform

After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic