To all concerned

Information on implementation of “Campaign to Eliminate FraudulentActs” related to Technical Intern Training Program・Specified Skilled
Worker Program in 2024
National Association for Global & Open Minded Communities(NAGOMi)To Supervising Organization, Registered Support Organization, Accepting
Organization, Sending Organization, and Foreign Workers

Please cooperate in eliminating fraudulent acts to ensure proper
employment of foreign workers
1. (1) On February 9th, 2024, the government's policy toward the revision of both systems(regarding the government's response based on the final report of the expert meeting on
the state of the technical intern training program and the specified skilled workerprogram) was announced at the relevant ministerial meeting. On March 15th of the same
year, a bill to partially amend the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act andthe Act on Proper Implementation of Technical Intern Training and Protection ofTechnical Intern Trainees was submitted to the current Diet session and passed plenary
session of the House of Representatives on May 21st.
(2) One of the reasons for this program reform was the criticism both domestically andinternationally regarding human rights violations (e.g. abusive language, violence, unpaid
salaries, etc.) and frequent disappearances that were often reported in connection with thetechnical intern training program. For this reason, “protection of the human rights offoreigners” and “career advancement of foreigners” are specifically mentioned in thevision for reviewing the new system.
2. (1) In the business world, under the banner of “Business and Human Rights,” there isa need to ensure and publicize that there are no human rights violations in the supply
chain (Human Rights Due Diligence, hereinafter referred to as “Human Rights DD”).
Many Western countries have enacted laws that hold companies accountable for humanrights violations such as forced labor and child labor (e.g., the Uyghur Forced Labor
Prevention Act in the United States and the Supply Chain Act in Germany), and violators
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are subject to import ban and product boycott.
(2) Although it has not been legalized in Japan, the government created the “Action Plan
on Business and Human Rights” in 2020, and in April 2023, made “Human Rights DD”
a requirement for public construction and government procurement.
In the private sector, the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) created a “Handbookfor Respecting Human Rights” in 2021 to promote corporate awareness reform andvoluntary initiatives. Nissho and Tosho also raise awareness of the importance of humanrights DD through seminars and other activities. As a result, the number of companies
implementing human rights DD is steadily increasing.
In 2022, the issue of unpaid overtime pays for 11 Vietnamese technical intern trainees
at a garment company in Ehime came to light, and Wacoal, a major clothing company
that ordered production, donated 5 million yen to a support organization for the trainees.
Hankyu and Hanshin department stores have decided to discontinue sales of clothing
produced on consignment by the company. Additionally, according to reports, since Julyof 2023, three megabanks Mitsubishi UFJ, Mitsui Sumitomo, and Mizuho have been
conducting strict checks to ensure that there are no human rights violations such as forcedlabor in the supply chain when lending.
3. (1) The declining population and labor shortage issues in Japan are becoming more andmore serious, and the future of Japan will depend on promoting capital investment (DXconversion) and becoming a country trusted and chosen by foreign human resources. Thisis a serious issue. Unfortunately, the depreciation of the yen over the past two years has
greatly diminished Japan's attractiveness.
(2) In order to be a “country that is trusted and chosen by foreign human resources,” above
all, it is important to revitalize the Japanese economy and increase wages, but we areliving in an era where it is essential to reduce cases of human rights violations as muchas possible.
To this end, it is necessary to “establish prompt and effective remedies” when humanrights violations occur, and to “take strict punishment against violating companies.” In
addition, from the perspective of reducing debt, which is one of the causes fordisappearances, an important issue is the abolition or reduction of fees collected fromforeign human resources, as advocated by the Vietnamese government and the ILO.
Furthermore, from the perspective of Japan's security (to avoid creating anti-Japanese), it
is important to create an environment (including career advancement in ssw) that allows
foreign human resources to feel glad to have come to Japan.
24. (1) Since the spring of 2022 after the coronavirus pandemic, we have begun to hear ofa relapse and spread of kickbacks and excessive entertainment from sending organizations
to supervising organizations, which were slowing down. And, it is said that in the field of“Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services” the number of “disguises”
based on forged documents and false applications is increasing. Furthermore, in the fieldof specified skilled worker, malicious brokers are already operating behind the scenes,and eliminating them is an urgent issue. The number of requests for help from foreign
human resources from various countries working under the specified skilled worker
program to support organizations from each country in Japan is increasing.
(2) In dealing with these issues, the roles of the “Japanese government” and “sendingcountry's government” are very important, but the awareness and efforts of “Japaneseparties” (supervising organizations, registered support organizations, acceptingorganizations) and “sending country’s parties” (sending organizations, foreign humanresources coming to Japan) are also very important.
From this perspective, we will promote a “Campaign to Eliminate Fraudulent Acts”
related to the technical intern training program and specified skilled worker program for
one year starting from June 2024.
We sincerely appreciate the cooperation of all concerned.

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