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Definition of power harassment in power harassment prevention guidelines

The law for the prevention of power harassment (hereinafter referred to as "power harassment") is not a law that specializes in power harassment. A new clause (hereinafter referred to as the "Power Harassment Prevention Act") has been added. At the beginning of 2020, when it came into force, there was a two-year transitional measure for small and medium-sized business owners, but from 2022, all business owners will be covered, and it will also apply to small and medium-sized medical institutions. How is everyone's response?

In the Power Harassment Prevention Act, what should actually be complied with is the "Guidelines for Employment Management Measures to Be Taken Regarding Problems Caused by Employers' Behavior Against the Background of Dominant Relationships in the Workplace" issued by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. (Hereinafter referred to as "power harassment prevention guidelines" (mhlw.go.jp)), so I will explain along the contents.

According to the power harassment prevention guidelines, power harassment is done in the workplace. a. Words and actions against the background of a superior relationship, b. Things that go beyond the necessary and reasonable scope of work, c. fulfillment (hereinafter referred to as “power harassment 3 requirements”). However, it was noted that ``from an objective point of view, appropriate work instructions and guidance given to the extent necessary and to the extent necessary for work do not fall under power harassment in the workplace.'' be careful.

Examples of power harassment and judgment criteria

The power harassment prevention guidelines list the following six items as specific examples of actions that meet the three power harassment requirements (see Table 1). There are examples of each applicable and non-applicable cases. It is necessary to make a judgment based on

Of these six types, mental attacks are the most difficult to judge, as the judgment is divided between the high court and the district court. For this reason, the power harassment prevention guidelines also show examples of cases that apply and cases that do not (See Table 2).
　

　パワハラ防止指針には、指導が業務上必要かつ相当な範囲を超えているかの判断基準は、「社会通念に照らし、当該言動が明らかに当該事業主の業務上必要性がない、又はその態様が相当でないもの」とされ、例示を挙げ〈表3参照〉、「この判断に当たっては、様々な要素（当該言動の目的、当該言動を受けた労働者の問題行動の有無や内容・程度を含む当該言動が行われた経緯や状況、業種・業態、業務の内容・性質、当該言動の態様・頻度・継続性、労働者の属性や心身の状況、行為者との関係性等）を総合的に考慮することが適当である。また、その際には、個別の事案における労働者の行動が問題となる場合は、その内容・程度とそれに対する指導の態様等の相対的な関係性が重要な要素となることについても留意が必要である」とされています。　
　

　

Ingenuity is required for the guidance system in the medical field

In the medical field, a higher degree of duty of care is imposed than in ordinary corporate operations, against various actions that threaten the safety of the patient's life, body, and mind. Therefore, it is undeniable that there is a current situation where we must give stronger guidance to those who repeat dangerous words and actions even if we pay attention to them. In the past, such guidance was given on a daily basis, and there is a history of following discipline in the medical field. However, even when conveying the same content, the direction is changing to require ingenuity in the way it is conveyed. We tend to do it unconsciously, but we must always be aware of the danger of being called power harassment if we continue to teach juniors what we have received from seniors in the past.

If you are recognized as a perpetrator, you may lose all the important things that you have built so far. If it becomes a person-to-person relationship, it is easy to fall into an emotional theory, and it may be difficult to evaluate objectively. The guidelines for the prevention of power harassment require employers to "clarify their policies, etc., and to disseminate and raise awareness of them." It is also important to build and operate a system that enables fair evaluation.