"ストライキが業務妨害にされた！〜関西生コン「大阪スト事件」で不当判決", 9 Oct 2020

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

On October 8, the court ruled that the defendants in the Kansai Nama Kon case were guilty of unlawful strikes in Osaka, upholding the prosecution’s recommended sentencing (prison sentence of 2.5 years suspended for 5 years)…

The court based its ruling on the interpretation that labour organizing activities across sectors are unlawful, determining that the Labour Union Law does not provide immunity for strikes where workers and a business do not have an employment relationship. The court decided that such strikes constitute obstruction of business by force, overturning the labor movement's successful efforts to expand the definition of an employer. Under this ruling, workers can be found guilty for conspiring to plan a strike…In this scenario, a worker who goes on strike can be charged for criminal conspiracy by participating in the planning of a crime without actually executing it…