Customer harassment refers to significant disruptive behavior by customers and other members of the public (hereinafter, customer(s)) toward employees that negatively impacts the work environment.
Significant disruptive behavior is defined as an assault, threats, or other illegal acts; excessive demands without a legitimate reason; abusive language; or other unjustified acts.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government enacted the Tokyo Customer Harassment Prevention Ordinance to help build a fair and sustainable society in which customers and all workers treat one another with mutual respect and stand on an equal footing.
The Ordinance states: “No person shall engage in customer harassment in any situation.” Let us work together as community members to build a better society free from customer harassment.
Learn more about the Ordinance （PDF・[English 500KB]）Customer harassment can be broadly categorized into three types.
Specific examples:
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Specific examples:
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Specific examples:
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Customers should understand that their words and actions may constitute harassment. Anyone can be a perpetrator, so be mindful of how words and actions affect workers.
When expressing legitimate complaints or opinions, it is important to choose an effective way to communicate and endeavor to remain calm so that anger does not escalate into harassment.
According to the Ordinance, “In applying this Ordinance, care must be taken not to unreasonably infringe upon the rights of customers (Article 5).”
On the other hand, it should be remembered that being a customer does not mean that any behavior is acceptable. We should all be mindful of communicating in an appropriate manner.
Business operators have responsibilities to take proactive, positive measures to protect their employees from customer harassment. To create a safe and comfortable work environment, implement the following measures:
Clearly communicate your basic policies and stance on preventing customer harassment to both workers and external parties. Ensure that workers are informed of your policy and that they themselves must not engage in customer harassment.
Set up a consultation desk for workers experiencing customer harassment and develop a system that enables designated personnel to respond appropriately.
To prepare for situations in which customer harassment may occur, develop a response manual outlining initial on-site actions, measures to protect the safety of workers who experience harassment, guidance on how to provide for their mental and physical care, and internal procedures and methods on how to handle cases of harassment.
In the event of a case likely involving customer harassment, verify all facts accurately, respond to the case, ensure the safety of the affected worker, and provide necessary mental and physical care.
Regularly provide workers with education and training on specific responses to customer harassment. In particular, executives are required to evaluate the impact of customer harassment on the business and to prioritize their responses accordingly. Therefore, an effective approach is to encourage them to take proactive measures by raising their awareness through training sessions led by external instructors.
To address problems, including legitimate complaints and instances of customer harassment, share both successful and unsuccessful examples from your organization and consider ways to improve services. It is good practice to conduct periodic reviews to assess your efforts and implement improvements.
Legitimate complaints should not be unfairly restricted, as they can lead to operational improvements and the development of new products or services. Additionally, it is important to keep in mind that some customers, including those with disabilities, may require reasonable accommodations.
Workers should be interested in the social context in which customer harassment occurs and what actions constitute it. They should also deepen their understanding of whom to consult and how to respond when affected. On-site supervisors, in particular, must fully understand the above, as they have responsibilities to protect the health and safety of on-site workers.
- It is also important to understand that workers have an equal relationship with customers and to learn how to communicate to prevent harassment by customers. This includes developing effective ways to respond to customer complaints and feedback.
- When business operators promote their initiatives to prevent customer harassment, such as through training and awareness activities, workers should also actively participate in and cooperate with these efforts.