Japan Press Weekly

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2023 January 11 - 17 [LABOR]

Zenroren in this year’s labor offensive seeks to win shorter working hours for all workers

Under the COVID-19 pandemic situation, Japan has seen a decline in working hours. However, the latest Internal Affairs Ministry’s labor force survey showed that average workers worked 2,122 hours in 2021.

The National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) and the People’s Spring Struggle Joint Committee in this year’s “shunto” spring labor offensive aims to achieve a good work-life balance for all workers through a fight to reduce working hours and realize a work environment where workers can take their annual leave without stress.

Over the past decade, the number of workers who filed a workers’ compensation claim for work-related brain and heart diseases remained at 700-900 levels. However, the number of claims accepted as work-related is small. In FY 2021, only 172 claims were accepted. Of them, 57 were filed by bereaved families of workers who died from overwork-induced brain/heart illnesses.

In addition, more and more workers who suffer mental illnesses due to excessively long working hours have applied for compensation under the Workers’ Accident Compensation system. In FY 2021, 2,346 workers filed claims that their mental problems should be recognized as work-related and covered by workers’ compensation insurance. Of them, 629 workers, including 79 workers who ended up killing themselves, succeeded in receiving compensation benefits.

In order to prevent workers’ death from overwork (karoshi), the need is to reduce working hours drastically.