Sexual harassment in the workplace, or while applying for a job, has received new attention as a result of the #MeToo movement. This was recently seen in Japan, where the resignation of the chairman of the National Olympic Committee, Yoshiro Mori, was a visible example of sexual discrimination in everyday working life.
TOPIC OF DISCUSSION: PREVENTING AND RESPONDING TO SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE
Against this backdrop, on June 18, 2021, the Society for Labor Law (DJGA), Bucerius Law School, the University of Hamburg and the law firm Taylor Wessing organized a three and half hour online Zoom conference with around seventy participants on the topic of "#MeToo - Sexual Harassment in the Workplace in Germany and Japan.” On the one hand, the event focused on the labor law dimension of this topic, namely prevention in the company and the possible reactions under labor law in the event of sexual harassment. On the other hand, the issue was also examined from a legal perspective. Successful prevention and reactions under labor law cannot be implemented without taking legal findings into account.
LECTURES FROM A JAPANESE PERSPECTIVE
Keeping this in mind, attorney Sayako Tsukamoto (City-Yuwa Partners, Tokyo) first discussed "How to deal with MeToo and related topics in Japanese companies" and Karola Japke (CHRO, Teijin Limited, Tokyo) talked about "MeToo from an HR perspective - compliance and practical implementation." Both presentations provided a look at corporate practice for dealing with sexual harassment in the workplace in Japanese companies.
A discussion was followed by an in-depth academic look at Japanese labor law by Prof. Dr. Etsushi Hosotani (Kagawa University, Takamatsu) whose presentation, followed by a discussion, was entitled "#MeToo - Sexual Harassment in the Workplace in Japan."