Welcome To WWN
Welcome to Working Women’s Network
Working Women’s Network (WWN) is a non-governmental organization working for the improvement of the status of working women. It was started by a group of women supporting the gender wage discrimination cases of women working for Sumitomo manufacturing companies.
◆WWN’s objectives
1. Improving the status of working women
2. Eliminating indirect discrimination including the track-based personnel system
3. Including the principle of equal pay for work of equal value in the legislation and establishing a gender-neutral job evaluation system
◆WWN’s activities
1. Conducting surveys on the situation of working women
2. Supporting gender wage discrimination and sexual harassment cases
3. Submitting reports to the CEDAW, ILO and other UN and international organizations
4. Submitting proposals to Members of the Diet and the government on amendments of laws to comply with international standards
5. Cooperating with mass media
◆Major cases supported by WWN
* gender wage discrimination cases brought by 9 plaintiffs against Sumitomo Electric Industries, Sumitomo Chemical, and Sumitomo Metal
The case against Sumitomo Electric Industries was settled in favor of the plaintiffs, who were promoted to section chiefs. The Concluding Comments from CEDAW in 2003 contributed to the outcome. The other two cases were also settled in favor of the plaintiffs.
* gender wage discrimination against the Chugoku Electric Power Co. (Ms. Shinobu Nagasako)
* sexual harassment case against Prada Japan (Ms. Rina Bovrisse)
* gender-based placement in track system, Towa Kogyo (Ms. Keiko Homma)
* lack of equal pay for work of equal value (Maruei Concrete Industries)
◆WWN’s international activities
2001 visited the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and ILO in Geneva
2003 visited the UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination against Women in New York
2007 visited the ILO and went on a study tour in the UK on equal pay for work of equal value
2009 visited the UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination against Women in New York, which was broadcast on NHK
2013 visited the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and ILO in Geneva
also visited the OECD in Paris, and the European Union office in Brussels, spoke at meetings at the University of Hawaii and the Leipzig University