NEWS News

On March 14, 2024, JaCER held the 3rd General Membership Meeting and the 2nd Practical Training on Engagement and Remedy in FY2023 at JEITA (Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association) (Tokyo, Japan). The event was held in a hybrid format with 27 member companies and about 60 participants including real and online participants.

In the first half of the training session, Representative Directors Mr. Daisuke Takahashi and Mr. Sakon Kuramoto led a group discussion on how to respond to and investigate multiple cases of harassment under the theme of "How to investigate facts and handle complaints from the viewpoint of business and human rights - on the subject of harassment cases". The participants discussed in a group discussion format to deepen their practical understanding.

The latter half of the session featured a lecture by Mr. Dante Pesce (Director of the Vincular Center, Universidad Católica de Valparaiso, Chile) as an overseas speaker. Mr. Pesce is an internationally renowned expert and former member of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights and a member of JaCER's Advisory Board. In his speech, under the theme of "Business and Human Rights Initiatives in the Global South," Mr. Pesce analyzed the current state of corporate practice regarding the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, human rights due diligence, and grievance mechanisms, as well as the characteristics of Japanese companies. Mr. Pesce pointed out the importance of continuous learning within companies of lessons learned from specific cases that have actually occurred, and the importance of front-line staff where adverse human rights impacts occur.
He also introduced some examples of good practices of grievance mechanisms in other countries, which provided a very valuable learning opportunity.

At the 3rd General Membership Meeting, Representative Director Hidemi Tomita reported on the results of grievances to JaCER, the progress of efforts by JaCER member companies, and the opinions of the members of the Stakeholder Panel and Advisory Board.

JaCER will continue to provide opportunities to promote understanding of grievance mechanisms and other related issues in cooperation with experts and knowledgeable organizations in Japan and abroad.