Correction recommendation to I'm Japan, an organization that accepts foreign trainees Cabinet Office

The public interest incorporated foundation "I'm Japan = International Human Resources Development Organization", which is the largest accepting organization for foreign technical intern trainees in Japan, preferentially orders items of nearly 600 million yen from a company run by an acquaintance of the former chairman. The Cabinet Office has recommended that the cause be thoroughly investigated, saying that it is suspected of violating the Public Interest Incorporated Foundation Certification Law, which prohibits the provision of profits to specific companies.

The public interest incorporated foundation "I'm Japan" is about 600 million yen for a company run by an acquaintance of Mr. Kyoei Yanagisawa (77), a former chairman of the Ministry of Labor and an alumnus of the former Ministry of Labor. A survey by a third-party committee revealed that there was a suspicion that the company had prioritized orders for goods.

In response to this, the Cabinet Office, which supervises public interest corporations, has also conducted on-site inspections and conducted investigations, but on the 1st, it was suspected that it violated the Public Interest Corporation Certification Law, which prohibited the provision of profits to specific companies. If so, I advised I'm Japan to take the necessary measures under the law.

Specifically, in addition to thoroughly investigating the cause of the transaction in question, it was requested to consider the disposition of the officers and employees involved and the refund of retirement allowances, and to disclose the results in detail. about it.

The Cabinet Office will confirm the status of I'm Japan's efforts and will consider stronger measures such as orders as necessary.

Became a public interest incorporated foundation in 2011

"I'm Japan = International Human Resources Development Organization" was established in 1991 and is the largest host organization for foreign technical intern trainees in Japan. Ten years ago, in 2011, it became a public interest incorporated foundation.

According to the website, etc., there are more than 300 staff members, and there are 20 bases in total including overseas.

There are currently six full-time directors, including the chairman, including an alumnus of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, which has jurisdiction over the foreign technical intern training program.

I'm Japan has signed agreements with the governments of five Asian countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam, and is the only country in Japan that accepts trainees dispatched directly from the governments of each country.

The trainees will be assigned to about 2000 member companies nationwide after receiving training in Japanese for about 5 months.

The total number of trainees accepted so far has exceeded 60,000, and currently about 10,000 are staying in Japan.

The financial resources are the guidance expenses of trainees collected from member companies, and according to the financial results report, the profit in 2020 is more than 3.45 billion yen.

Public interest incorporated foundations have tax incentives and are exempt from tax on businesses for public interest purposes.

Cabinet Office "Serious problems that can lead to the cancellation of public interest certification"

The reason for recommending to "I'm Japan" this time is that the Cabinet Office originally said that a public interest corporation that operates for the benefit of an unspecified number of people preferentially orders goods etc. from a specific company for many years. We have neglected the discipline stipulated by the Public Interest Corporation Certification Law. "

According to a survey by a third-party committee, I'm Japan is in general competition for transactions with a company run by a female acquaintance of former chairman and former Ministry of Labor OB Kyoei Yanagisawa, and a company introduced by this acquaintance. It became clear that all contracts were voluntary, contrary to the internal rules of bidding.

Based on this situation, the Cabinet Office states, "It can be said that this is a serious problem that can lead to the cancellation of public interest certification, and it is necessary to pay close attention to how corporations will respond to the content of the recommendation."

In addition, the former chairman once invested 3.5 million yen in a company run by an acquaintance of former chairman Yanagisawa, and the current chairman and lawyer Hitoshi Kanamori (66) also invested 500,000 yen with shareholders. I know that it was.

The Cabinet Office also touched on these facts, saying, "The fact that the person who owns the shares of a specific business operator for which special benefits have been provided is still in office as an officer is a citizen of the public interest corporation. It is thought that it will damage the trust of the company. "

For this reason, the recommendation requires that officers who were shareholders should be rigorously examined for their eligibility, and that executive compensation and retirement allowances be reduced.

I'm Japan "What is required Report by the due date"

Regarding receiving the recommendation from the Cabinet Office, I'm Japan commented, "We will take the recommendation seriously and report the required content by the designated date."