Labor Policy Keiichiro HAMAGUCHI

Chapter 4 Gender Policy

Section 1 Equal Opportunity for Men and Women

(1) Protection of women workers 1911 Factory Law set limit for women at 12 hours and banned night work. ILO Convention No.4 on Night Work of Women adopted in Labor Standards Law limited overtime by women (2 hours per day, 6 hours per week, 150 hours per year) and banned night work Study Group on Labor Standards Law report advocated abolition of women protection because of discriminatory impact.

Trade unions opposed removal of women protection revised LSL maintained protection for industrial firms, modified (24 hours per month, 150 hours per year) for non-industrial firms revised LSL abolished women protection except for maternity protection ILO Convention No.171 on Night Work applied both sex and required health check revised LSL will remove ban on underground work.

(2) Protection of maternity 1911 Factory Law banned work within 5 weeks after childbirth revised FL extended it to 4 weeks before childbirth and 6 weeks after childbirth revised FL banned dismissals during these periods ILO Convention No Labor Standards Law extended the periods to 6 weeks before and after childbirth.

(3) Equal opportunity and treatment in employment

(a)Equal wages for men and women 1947 LSL banned wage discrimination based on sex (Article 4). Japan ratified ILO Convention No.100 on Equal Remuneration for Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value in This did not prevent any discriminatory treatment against women, as well as wage gap caused by discriminatory human resource management.

(b) 1985 Endeavor obligation law UN adopted Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in UN adopted Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in Study Group on Labor Standards Law report advocated establishment of anti-discrimination legislation. Employers opposed introduction of equal opportunity and treatment Equal Employment Opportunity Law required “endeavor to provide equal opportunity,” only banned discrimination in retirement and dismissal.

(c) 1997 Legal obligation law 1985 endeavor obligation law had a few legal effects but vast social impact on human resource management revised EEOL banned any discrimination against women in recruitment, hiring, assignment and promotion. It allowed positive actions (setting quota to rectify unequal situation). It required employers to prevent sexual harassment.

(d) 2006 revision 2004 Study Group on Equal Employment Opportunity Policy report focused on indirect discrimination and discrimination based on pregnancy. Labor Policy Council discussed the issues revised EEOL ban indirect discrimination on specific areas (height requirement, transfer requirement and transfer experience, excluding part-time work).