 Labor Ministry advised to ease regulations regarding karoshi An advisory panel on legislation of preventive measures against "karoshi," death from overwork, on December 27 submitted an opinion calling for a major backpedalling from the current measures. The panel says that employers are under no legal obligation to allow employees whose monthly hours of overtime work exceed 100 hours to seek advice from a doctor unless they ask for medical advice. The Labor Ministry guidelines established in 2002 allow employers to have workers work overtime up to 45 hours a month, with instruction that a medical doctors' advice is required for workers who need to work more than 45 hours. Medical studies have proven that risks of karoshi will increase if a worker's overtime work exceeds 45 hours a month. (end) |