FAQ
Organizational questions
What is Woven Union?
Woven Union is a labor union organized at Woven by Toyota, Inc. under Japanese Labor Union Act that is open to any employees of Woven by Toyota in Japan in non-managerial positions.
The Union is formed by Woven folks for Woven folks to protect our rights and collectively bargain with the company.
Why unionize?
We believe that recently there is less and less communication between Woven by Toyota's senior leadership and employees.
We don't see the leadership responding in good faith to engagement surveys, RTO surveys and others, not giving clear rationale about compensation reductions, and, most importantly, not treating the employees with the trust and respect we deserve.
We believe that a Union can be a major avenue to communicate with the leadership and discuss these concerns to make changes and adjustments.
How can I join the Union?
You can join the Woven Union by filling the membership form.
Is it safe to be a Union member?
Japanese Labor Law and the Constitution of Japan protect labor unions and strictly prohibit any harassment and discrimination against anyone for their union activity.
Additionally, Toyota Motor Corporation has a strong and famous union and would not support Woven by Toyota acts in bad faith against its union.
Who can join?
Anyone who works in an individual contributor role at Woven by Toyota and has work responsibilities at Woven by Toyota is welcome to join. This includes not only full-time employees but also contractors with different employment statuses.
However, there are exceptions under the Japanese law. We are not able to admit folks in supervisory positions, ones having access to employment or policy plans, or people representing the interests of the company. For example, we can't admit HR vertical's employees.
Can I leave the Union later?
Union members have the right to leave the Union.
Can the company find out if I am a union member or an organizer?
We don't disclose this information to Woven by Toyota and no one is obligated to disclose their union membership except Union Representatives and Union members who want to attend bargaining meetings.
However, there is a downside for this: if you suspect that you have been targeted by the company because of your union activity, but have not officially declare yourself as a member of a union, the company can pretend that they did not know that you are a union member.
Does Woven Union collect union fees?
The Union collects a small amount of fees currently set to 1000 yen per month. We would want to make membership free for everyone, but there are some mandatory costs under Japanese law that we will have to pay. For example, it is mandatory to do an annual audit of Union's finances, which normally costs 100,000-200,000 yen. In addition, we will spend these funds to register Union's domains, host Union's email, and print Union's forms, leaflets, etc.
To compare, most unions in Japan collect fees within 5,000-10,000 yen per month. We will attempt to collect as little as possible to make the union membership accessible to everyone at Woven by Toyota.
Finally, the Union must produce the above-mentioned audited expense report every year to let the members review how the collected fees were spent.
Union activities
Who runs the Union?
You. The Woven Union is a democratic organization ran by all members.
The main governing body is the General Meeting open to all members to make decisions, adopt resolutions, and elect Union's Officers. The Officers hold an Executive Committee Meeting once a month and participate in the day to day running of the Union together with the Union’s secretariat which is made up of titled Officers (chair, deputy chairs, secretary, and treasurer) and meets regularly. The Executive Committee meetings are also open to all members.
Any Union member can be elected as an Officer or vote in Officer elections, and the Officers stand for re-election every year.
What are our demands?
We are forming the Union to promote mutual trust and transparency, improve our working environment to help build a company where world-class talent is happy to work and build the future of mobility for everyone.
But, most importantly, the Union is what you make it to be. We make decisions by majority votes and collect thoughts, ideas and grievances to guide our demands and requests to the company leadership.
How does the Union make decisions?
Most of the Union's decisions are made by a secret majority vote. This means that you will always have a say in how the Union is ran and what actions will the Union take.
Can the Union help me personally?
If you have an individual conflict with the company, such as being treated unfairly, pressured, discriminated against, harassed, getting laid off or similar, the Union will be able to help negotiate with the company, find legal advice and support and ultimately file formal complaints with the Labor Relations Commission.
What are Union members' responsibilities?
As a Union member, at the very least, you will have to adhere to Union's resolutions and pay Union fees.
Then, you are highly encouraged to participate in Union's General Meetings, vote for proposed resolutions, elect Officers, stand for elections yourself, submit your own proposals and ideas, etc. However, these activities are voluntary, and it is not a requirement to participate in them.
Lastly, to join the Union you will need to submit a membership form.