Japan Press Weekly

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2015 September 16 - 29 [LABOR]

13,000 new employees in private sector sent to SDF for ‘training’

It has come to light that 13,041 private sector workers across Japan were forced to receive training at the Japanese Self-Defense Forces in fiscal 2014. The Defense Ministry revealed this in its response to Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Kira Yoshiko.

For instance, the NTT Corporation, the largest telecommunications company in Japan, had its new employees experience SDF daily drills under the name of “off-the-job training”. That company is designated by the controversial national security bills as a “public institution” to cooperate with state authorities in an emergency.

In June 2014, 18 newcomers assigned to NTT branch offices in Fukushima and Aomori prefectures were sent to SDF camps to receive training for three days.

The Telecommunication Workers’ Union (Tsushin-roso), affiliated with the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren), revealed the details of that training. According to the union, those young workers were woken up at 6:00 a.m. by the reveille call and subjected to grueling training all day until they went to bed at 11:00 p.m. The drills, including intense physical exercises and a 10 kilometer-march, have nothing to do with NTT’s ordinary operations. The company explains that receiving these drills would help employees enhance their sense of discipline and camaraderie.

At an Upper House Budget Committee meeting in March, JCP Kira took up the issue that private businesses often exploit new employees under the pretext of “training”. Grilled by Kira, Labor Minister Shiozaki Yasuhisa promised to check whether workers are suffering from the exhaustive training programs. Allowing private corporations to force young workers to undergo SDF training contradicts the minister’s remark.

JCP lawmaker Tatsumi Kotaro also revealed in August the fact that in 2013 the Defense Ministry considered setting up a program to encourage private enterprises to train new employees at the SDF for two years. The ministry’s move has provoked public criticism for leading to the introduction of conscription through corporate activities.

Private company programs to have their employees receive SDF daily drills may open the door to the revival of Japan’s draft system which had mobilized the general public for wars of aggression.

Past related articles:
> ‘Economic conscription’ could become reality in Japan [July 14, 2015]
> Draft system may follow war legislation [June 22, 2015]