Labor Policy Keiichiro HAMAGUCHI

Chapter 2 Labor Market Policy

Section 1 Public and Private Placement Services

(1)Regulation of private placement services and temporary work agencies in pre-war era Japan’s placement service dates back Edo era Employment Placement Law put fee- charging placement businesses under governor’s permit revised EP Law put labor supply businesses under governor’s permit. Influence of ILO Recommendation No. １

(2) Free employment placement services and public employment placement offices in the pre-war era First free placement service (non-profit) established in EP Law made placement offices under municipalities revised EP Law nationalized placement offices. Renamed to national labor mobilization offices under war regime.

(3) Enactment of Employment Security Law – public employment placement services 1947 Employment Security Law put public employment security offices of the State under governor’s supervision ILO Convention No.88 required “national system of employment office.” Council for Regulatory Reform advocates privatization. World trend is “welfare to work.”

(4) Enactment of Employment Security Law – prohibition of fee-charging private placement businesses and labor supply businesses 1947 ES Law prohibited most fee-charging placement businesses and all labor supply businesses ILO Convention No.34 required abolition of these businesses ILO Convention No.96 relaxed it. GHQ ordered eradication of labor bosses even in the form of sub-contract.

(5) Restrictive liberalization of temporary work agencies Administrative Management Agency recommended the liberalization in Ministry of Labor considered it at Study Group from 1978 to Worker Dispatching Law enacted in 1985 The business restricted in specific jobs (positive list system) Regular type and registration type

(6) General liberalization of temporary work agencies ILO Convention No.188 deregulated the businesses in Worker Dispatching Law revised in 1999 From positive list system to negative list system (except for manufacturing) Setting of upper limit on the duration (1 year)

(7) 2003 revision of the Law Worker Dispatching Law revised again in Worker Dispatching in manufacturing liberalized. Extension of upper limit on the duration (from 1 year to 3 years).

(8) Further proposed deregulation Council for Regulatory Reform advocates: complete abolition of upper limit of 3years, abolition of obligation to propose direct employment, abolition of prohibition of prior interview. Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy also insists this policy million dispatched workers in 2006.

permanentregisteredtotal ,197382,070510, ,717469,339612, ,8431,113,5211,386, ,5611,449,3521,747, ,5941,791,0602,129, ,4061,986,9742,362, ,2001,844,8442,266, ,7821,933,9822,389, ,5012,343,9673,210,468

(9) Deregulation in fee-charging private placement businesses Employment Security Law revised in General prohibition on private placement businesses was abolished. Upper limit on the placement fees deregulated. 388,000 placement cases in 2006 (341,000 for fee-charging, 48,000 for non profit).