With one year to go until April 2024, when the cap on overtime work will be applied to the construction industry with penalties, general contractors are rushing to implement work style reforms. According to the results of a questionnaire conducted by the Nikkan Kensetsu Kogyo Shimbun, two companies in the civil engineering and construction fields said that they had "prospects" for responding to the upper limit regulations. Although the situation is tough at the moment, there are also noticeable companies that are feeling the positive effects of improving productivity and promoting DX. A year of critical moments begins as the shift to the new 3Ks (salary, vacation, hope) is essential.
Under the laws related to work style reform, the upper limit of overtime work (excluding holidays) is set at 45 hours per month and 360 hours per year. penalties are imposed. In February and March, we conducted a questionnaire survey of 35 major general contractors and received responses from all of them.
The degree of achievement in anticipation of the upper limit regulation is ▽already achieved ▽prospect achieved ▽prospect not established They were asked to choose from a five-point scale: steady progress in reducing work hours, feeling the need to reduce working hours but it is difficult, and difficult to achieve.
None of the civil engineering or construction companies responded that they had "already achieved" at the site, and only one construction company (3%) and one civil engineering company (3%) said they had "prospects set". 14 companies (44%) in the civil engineering sector and 7 (21%) in the construction sector answered that they are making steady progress in reducing emissions, although there is no prospect of achieving the goal.
Two companies (6%) responded that they had achieved the target in the in-office sector, while 15 companies (44%) responded that they had a vision in place. Telework, which has rapidly spread due to the corona crisis, has changed the way we work, and we have found that it is progressing compared to the out-of-office department.
In terms of efforts to reform work styles, many responded that they would like to improve the work environment by implementing DX, strengthening on-site support systems, working from home, etc., and outsourcing work. The government plans to take a multitude of steady measures, including proper management of working hours. There are also a number of companies that point out the importance of reforming the mindset, saying, ``The final problem is the awareness of each individual'' (a medium-sized general contractor).
As with public works, where the bidding contract system is gaining ground to support work style reforms, some say that it will become even more important for private works to set construction periods and prices that take into account "eight days off in four weeks." In addition to self-help efforts, it is necessary to deepen the partnership with the understanding and cooperation of the client.
Compliance with laws and regulations is a matter of course, but there are also strong views that the tightening of regulations this time is an important step in transforming the construction industry into a better one with the new 3Ks. "We want to break away from the labor-intensive model by making full use of IT," said a general contractor official.
The companies that responded to the questionnaire (35 companies, in alphabetical order) regarding their response to the upper limit of overtime work with penalties are as follows.
△ Asunaro Aoki Construction △ Asunuma Construction △ Hazama Ando △ Obayashi Construction △ Omoto Construction △ Okumura Construction △ Kashima △ Kumagai Construction △ Konoike Construction △ Penta-Ocean Construction △ Sato Kogyo △ Shimizu Construction △ Taisei Construction △ Dai Nippon Civil Engineering Works △ Taiho Construction △ Takamatsu Construction △ Takenaka Corporation △Takenaka Civil Engineering Works △Tekken Construction △Toa Construction △Tokyu Construction △Totetsu Kogyo △Toyo Construction △Toda Construction △Tobishima Construction △Nakano Fudo Construction △Nishimatsu Construction △Nippon Land Development △Haseko Corporation △PS Mitsubishi △Fujita △Maeda Construction △Matsui Construction △ Sumitomo Mitsui Construction △ Wakachiku Construction.
