"「正社員の個人事業主化」が波紋、弁護士からは懸念の声も…電通は困惑気味", 13 Nov 2020

[Japanese-to-English translation provided by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre.]

Major advertising company Dentsu announced that it will begin to shift some regular employees to sole proprietors, switching them to outsourcing contracts…

According to the digital version of Nikkei Shimbun (11 November 2020), those who wish to retire early can sign an outsourcing contract with a new company that Dentsu will establish in November. The contract period is 10 years, and contractors will be offered a fixed pay based on their salaries when they were Dentsu employees. They will also receive incentives for profits earned by their work.

The measure will target employees over the age of 40 across all job types. Sole proprietors who sign a contract with Dentsu’s new company will be able to work several different positions internally and sign separate contracts with other companies [except for Dentsu's competitors]…

Dentsu said the new system was introduced in response to employees who were asking for a different work style and is not a restructuring measure for reducing human resources cost. However, voices on the internet have raised concerns, arguing that Dentsu’s new policy amounts to restructuring. One of these voices is Kouta Ishibashi, a lawyer who works on labour issues.

“Based on what I’ve heard in the media, Dentsu doesn’t have to convert employees to sole proprietors. Instead, they can achieve the same results by allowing employees to have side businesses. I feel that Dentsu has an ulterior motive, which is to unburden itself from labour law restrictions and social security tax. The fact that this policy would apply to employees over the age of 40 and across job types also seems to indicate that Dentsu is attempting something that is akin to restructuring.”

Concern has also been raised around the point that employees who become sole proprietors are prohibited from contracting with Dentsu’s competitors. Because of this rule, a Dentsu contractor may not be able to pursue other jobs in his field and will be forced to cling to the company for employment. As a result, Dentsu may exploit former employees who become sole proprietors by holding disproportionate power over them"…