Customer harassment countermeasures and the obligations they create on employers in Japan

At a glance

• Workplace legislation is being strengthened to address harassment of employees by those who are not their co-workers or managers, such as a customer.
• Employers must establish steps to address customer harassment.
• The definition of customer harassment has been clarified.
• If an employer fails to fulfill its responsibilities regarding customer harassment, there is a possibility of penalties such as corrective recommendations by the labor authorities and public disclosure of the company’s name.

Background

Employees who face harassment at work are currently protected by Japan's existing laws on power harassment. This has been the case since 2019, when the Act on Comprehensive Promotion of Labour Policies, Employment Stabilisation of Employees, and Enrichment of Employees' Vocational Lives (Act) was updated to specifically address power harassment in the workplace. 

However, the existing legal framework does not specifically address incidents where employees are harassed by those who are not their co-workers or managers. Such incidents are known as customer harassment, or 'Kasuhara'. 

Current legislative landscape

Ordinances have been passed at the provincial level in some provinces to address this issue as incidents of customer harassment have been on the rise, prompting action by law makers. However, no national level existed. In this instance, an amendment to the Comprehensive Promotion of Labour Policies Act introducing new provisions on customer harassment was promulgated in June this year, and the amendment is scheduled to take effect at some point by December 2026. 

While the effective date of the new law is not yet known since it has not yet been formally passed, the following are likely to be featured in the new law: 

• Customer harassment to be defined as conduct that meets all three of the following:
  • Conduct by customers, business partners, facility users or other stakeholders.
  • Actions that exceed socially acceptable boundaries.
  • Actions that harm the working environment of employees.
• Employers will be required to clarify and communicate their policies, establish consultations systems and respond promptly and appropriately to incidents.
• Employers must not dismiss or otherwise treat a worker disadvantageously for consulting about customer harassment or for stating facts when cooperating in responding to such a consultation.
• Companies will be required to cooperate with each other. In an employee of one company harasses an employee of another the employer must cooperate with the other company's investigation and response.
• Employers should strive to deepen their understanding of customer harassment and provide training or other measures to ensure that their employees do not engage in acts of customer harassment toward employees of other employers.
• Measures taken to comply with this law must not infringe on consumer rights or violate obligations under discrimination legislation.