Labor tribunal member

One of the two members of a labor tribunal (労働審判委員会) who sit beside its judge (Labor Tribunal Act, Article 7): a part-time member appointed from among people with expert knowledge and experience of labor relations (Article 9, paragraphs (2) and (3)), who takes part in the proceedings from a neutral and impartial position (Article 9, paragraph (1)). The court picks the two for each case, taking care that the tribunal is appropriately made up given what each member knows and has done (Article 10). A labor tribunal member who, without good reason, reveals how the deliberations went or the opinions of the judge and members, or a secret of a person learned in the work, commits a crime, even after leaving the post (Articles 33 and 34).