Japan Press Weekly

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2011 February 2 - 8 [LABOR]

My husband’s suicide was work-related: wife of a teacher

A wife in Tome City in Miyagi Prefecture has been claiming public workman’s compensation for the suicide of her husband who was an English teacher.

Oizumi Hiroshi, 43, leaped to his death in February 2008 from the third floor of a junior high school building.

He was assigned to city-owned Nakata Junior High School in 2006 and took charge of a class of third year students. He did not know the situation of his 14 and 15 year-old students well and was having a difficult time teaching them in class and improving their English.

Next year, he was reappointed to the third year students again. His wife Junko, 46, recalled, “He looked so disappointed. He wanted to teach English to first year students.”

Around July 2007, he began frequently complaining about his job and vomiting every day. In September, he began expressing his desire to die. Junko told him to seek medical care but he continued working, saying, “I can’t take any days-off.”

A group of supporters seeking public worker’s compensation for the death of the teacher points out that his suicide from overwork is not a rare case.

According to the education ministry, teachers at junior high schools work 2.5 hours of overtime a day, including taking work home with them. Even on Sundays, they work 3 hours for school club activities. In total, they work about 60 hours of overtime a month. However, these are the only average figures.

Leader of the group Sasaki Eiichi says, “Many school teachers actually work more than 80 hours of overtime a month, exceeding the standards for public work-related accident compensation.” He added, “The teacher suffered depression induced by his official duties and committed suicide while at work. Compensation for public workers should be promptly paid to his bereaved family.”