Japan Press Weekly

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2013 July 31 - August 13 [LABOR]

Watami receives ‘Black Corporation’ award

Japan’s major restaurant chain Watami, notorious for its abysmal mistreatment of young workers, has won the “Black Corporation of the Year Award,” hosted by a civil group.

The organizing committee of the award, which was founded last year and consists of union officials, lawyers, NPOs, and journalists, conducted an award ceremony on August 11 in Tokyo.

The committee defines as “black corporations” business entities which intentionally or arbitrarily force employees to endure illegal working conditions and/or violent labor practices, such as harassment.

In the first award last year, Watami won the “Citizens’ Prize”.

In 2008, a woman worker of Watami committed suicide after working 141 hours of overtime in one month. She had just started working at the restaurant chain two month before her suicide. Watami’s founder Watanabe Miki, who was elected in July as a House of Councilors member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, has refused to meet with her family or to even offer them an apology.

The existence of “black corporations” has become a social issue since it was taken up in the Diet by the Japanese Communist Party. The labor ministry has announced that it will start in September investigations on companies suspected of conducting illegal labor practices.

Past related articles:
> 8 companies nominated for ‘Black Corporation’ of the Year Award (June 28, 2013)
> JCP accuses Watami of harsh working conditions (June 19, 2013)