"Rengo chief rebuffs PM's move to ease cap on overtime work," 24 October 2025

[Unofficial description by Business & Human Rights Resource Centre]

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi instructed her labour minister to ease restrictions on overtime work in due consideration of workers' health and their will. Before becoming prime minister, Takaichi caused a stir when she vowed to dispense with the phrase "work-life balance" when it comes to herself and have those around her "work like draft horses."

Since 2019, Japan has imposed restrictions on overtime work, setting the maximum allowed limit to 720 hours a year or below 100 hours a month.

The head of Japan's largest umbrella group for labour unions, Tomoko Yoshino, warns that it will go against the recent push for workstyle reforms, adding that it is already near the threshold that heightened the risks of death from overwork.