신산업혁명 시대의 고용형태 다양화와 노사정관계 - 일본 렌고ㆍ경제동우회의 전략적 선택과 정부의 입안 -

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine the strategic choices made by Japanese labor unions (Rengo), employers (Keizaidoyukai), and the government (Fair Trade Commission, Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, and Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare) to diversify employment forms in response to the acceleration of technological innovation, and to analyze the significance and limitations of the enactment of the Freelancer Law. Ambiguous employment is a new type of employment that has emerged in the era of the New Industrial Revolution, which has accelerated technological innovation, including digitalization. In Japan, the movement to protect the rights of ambiguous workers began in earnest around 2017. This coincides with the time when New York City began protecting the rights of ambiguous workers. In its 2017 proposal, Rengo proposed recognizing the “worker status” of non-employed workers. The 2020 call for legal protections also called for recognition of worker status, but not in the sense of full collective bargaining rights, but rather in the sense of ensuring a fair trade relationship. Platform workers like Uber Eats are a typical example of non-employed workers. While Uber Eats has been recognized by the Labor Commission for its collective bargaining rights, it has not been recognized as a worker, which is the basis for full protection. The collective bargaining rights of platform workers are not legally guaranteed, so they are not secure, as was the case with the rejection of the collective bargaining demands of the Amazon Delivery Workers Union. With the advent of the new industrial revolution, employment patterns have already diversified. The implementation of the Freelancer Act in Japan is the first step in legally protecting diversified employment forms, so it has implications for Korea, which is currently debating a similar law. However, it is difficult to say whether it is enough to ensure a stable life for non-employed people with weak bargaining power who provide labor services and receive payment.