The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare plans to submit legislation requiring companies to implement measures against “customer harassment,” defined as inappropriate behavior by customers toward employees. While the law may not include punitive measures against harassers, ensuring effective implementation of these measures will be crucial.
The proposal requiring companies to establish relevant measures has reached general consensus in the Labor Policy Council, an advisory body to the Ministry comprising representatives from both labor and management. The Ministry plans to summarize related discussions by year-end and submit amendments to the Labor Measures Advancement Law and related legislation during next year’s regular Diet session.
According to an expert panel report released by the Ministry in August, customer harassment comprises three elements:
- Involvement of customers, clients, and facility users.
- Behavior violating social norms.
- Damage to the work environment.
Specific harassing behaviors include:
- Physical violence such as hitting and kicking.
- Demanding employees kneel to apologize.
- Psychological attacks through online posting of employee information.
- Verbal abuse toward phone operators.
- Persistent complaints.
- Restricting employee freedom through prolonged presence or occupying phone lines.
The Ministry will not impose penalties on harassing customers but will require companies to implement countermeasures. Specific measures will be detailed in guidelines following legal amendments. Companies are expected to:
- Clearly define and publicize response measures.
- Establish systems for handling harassment incidents.
- Set up support consultation services.
A current point of contention is whether to require cooperation in investigations from business partners without employment relationships with companies. Labor representatives advocate mandatory enforcement, while management representatives prefer defining it as an “effort obligation,” effectively making it optional. This issue remains under discussion.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government pioneered an anti-customer harassment ordinance in October, effective next fiscal year. The ordinance states that “no one shall engage in customer harassment anywhere” and sets corresponding responsibilities for customers, business operators, employees, and the Tokyo government. While recognizing valid complaints as beneficial for business improvement and warning against rights violations, it includes no penalty provisions.
A cross-party study group in the Hokkaido Prefectural Assembly proposed an anti-customer harassment ordinance this month, expected to pass at the assembly session on November 26.
