Scope of Labour Law, Negative Freedom of Association and Minimum Wage Setting - Comparing Japan and EU

Sammanfattning: This essay compares the labour law regulations in Japan and EU/Sweden. The focus of the paper is the definition of workers, negative freedom of association, and minimum wage settings. This paper firstly illustrates who is classified as a ‘worker’ and discusses the issues of unclear categorisation of platform workers and the potential impact of gigification in the labour markets. The EU proposal regarding platform workers will also be touched upon. The proposed Directive challenges employment status, algorithm management and rebuttable legal presumption, which are not recognized in the new Japanese law for platform workers that was just enacted in May 2023. Along with the comparison of the union membership coverage, structure, and general perceptions of unionisation in the two, this paper explores the interpretations of negative freedom of the right not to join a union. Although enjoying the negative right is still possible in Japan and the EU, the scope of the application is quite limited. In relation to minimum wage setting, the two try to fight the issue of ‘working poor’ and ‘work-in poverty’ through the Minimum Wage Act (Japan) and the proposed Directive on minimum wages (the EU). While Japan sets statutory minimum wages determined by the ‘Council’ method, Sweden does not set ones in legislation and minimum wages are decided by collective agreements. The concluding analysis will evaluate and explore the possibilities of the legislation in Japan and the Directives in the EU.