Loan firm pays workers 3.5 billion yen as back pay for 2 years

Takefuji Corporation, Japan's major credit firm, has paid its 5,000 employees and retirees about 3.5 billion yen of back pay as worth as the last two years' overtime work.

Akahata of July 29 reported that this became possible after Takefuji had reluctantly accepted the call for the payment of unpaid overtime allowances for all employees and retirees following a lawsuit filed by the two former Takefuji workers in February.

The Osaka Labor Bureau of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare raided Takefuji's head office and seized relevant documents to back up evidence that Takefuji had been forcing the workers to work overtime without pay, which is in violation of the Labor Standards Law. The Bureau will send the case involving Takefuji and its executives to the prosecutor's office.

Takefuji is still in a court dispute with former branch managers who claim that Takefuji's refusal to pay unpaid overtime allowances to supervisory personnel is illegal.

Onki Takeshi, former Osaka Branch manager, filed a suit against the firm in the Osaka District Court demanding that unpaid wages be paid. He accused Takefuji using internal documents in Akahata Sunday edition of September 22, 2002. He stated, "I worked 2,552-hours overtime in the past two years, but I was only paid for 479 hours." (end)