Showa Shell ordered to pay 50 million yen over sexual discrimination

Tuesday 30th June, 02:30 PM JST

TOKYO —

The Tokyo District Court on Monday ordered Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. to pay about 50 million yen in compensation to 12 former and current female employees for sexually discriminating against them by paying them lower wages than those of male employees. The plaintiffs had sought payment of some 550 million yen to compensate for the wage differences with their male colleagues. Presiding Judge Hiroshi Watanabe ruled there was sexual discrimination in terms of promotions and wages among its employees around 1993 and there was also the influence of a male-dominant tradition even when a new personnel system was introduced in 2000 which was supposed to give priority to employees’ abilities and achievements.

Meanwhile, the court turned down the plaintiffs’ request for payment to make up for the wage gaps because the period of eligibility during which plaintiffs can seek compensation has expired for some of the wages, and also because it would be difficult to evaluate the amount of money for each person under the new system even if the period of eligibility had not expired. The court did not recognize the need for their promotions. According to the ruling, the plaintiffs joined the company between 1966 and 1974. Two of them retired, but one has since been rehired by the company, while another passed away while she was still employed. Yasuko Yunoki, a 61-year-old plaintiff, told a press conference after the ruling, ‘‘It is unjust (for the court) not to order the elimination of the wage differences while admitting the existence of discrimination at the same time,’’ indicating a possible appeal. Showa Shell Sekiyu said in a statement, ‘‘We will take necessary measures after confirming the details of the sentence.’’

Kyodo

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9 Comments

torsoaho at 03:20 PM JST - 30th June

‘‘It is unjust (for the court) not to order the elimination of the wage differences while admitting the existence of discrimination at the same time,’’

Welcome to the world of Japanese logic. Japan is light years behind the rest of the world in terms of protecting equal rights.
paolo27th at 04:40 PM JST - 30th June

So they were found guilty but not asked to increase wages for their female staff? Is there a word in Japanese for "justice"? I guess the meaning must be very different from the English counterpart.
kirakira25 at 05:41 PM JST - 30th June

Seems to me that discriminati9on is as rife in the court system as it is in Showa Shell.
dishdash at 06:16 PM JST - 30th June

The poor lady that passed away...well you cant say Japanese courts are inconsistent...they do this type of thing all the time....wrap it in bureacracy and hope that all the legit plaintiffs die.
nisegaijin at 09:39 PM JST - 30th June

another reason not to hire females for roles other than assistant. they will just screw you over.
pointofview at 11:08 PM JST - 30th June

So basically the judge screwed them over in the end and the old boys got off with a slap. Typical for Japan.
medievaltimes at 01:00 AM JST - 1st July

‘‘It is unjust (for the court) not to order the elimination of the wage differences while admitting the existence of discrimination at the same time,’’

Ahhh Japan. This makes a lot of logical sense doenst it? And since 1993!?!

I would never raise a daughter in Japan...but thats just me.
bdaniel08 at 06:57 AM JST - 1st July

nisegaijin : another reason not to hire females for roles other than assistant. they will just screw you over.

Your comment has to be taken as a joke or you are a true misogynist ?
fishy at 01:44 PM JST - 1st July

was it really a discrimination based on the gender ? did those women really have the same ability as those men who were getting paid more ? those women had to know how much they were going to make when they started working for the company.. did they not notice men were getting more money from the beginning ? if the starting salary is different for just women, that would be illegal but if besides the fact they were women, but maybe their abilities to accomplish work were lower as well, then to me, it just sounds like those women were making a big fuss. I am not trying to discriminate against women, because i AM a woman, too... but i just don't get this..