Labor bureau: Japanese man, 45, died of overwork

[WriteDown]

Source: AP

TOKYO - A Japanese labor bureau has ruled that one of Toyota's top car engineers died from working too many hours, the latest in a string of such findings in a nation where extraordinarily long hours for some employees has long been the norm.

ADVERTISEMENT

The man who died was aged 45 and had been under severe pressure as the lead engineer in developing a hybrid version of Toyota's blockbuster Camry line, said Mikio Mizuno, the lawyer representing his wife. The man's identity is being withheld at the request of his family, who continue to live in Toyota City where the company is based.

In the two months up to his death, the man averaged more than 80 hours of overtime per month, according to Mizuno.

He regularly worked nights and weekends, was frequently sent abroad and was grappling with shipping a model for the pivotal North American International Auto Show in Detroit when he died of ischemic heart disease in January 2006. The man's daughter found his body at their home the day before he was to leave for the United States............


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080709/ap_on_bi_ge/japan_overwork_death

---

Not surprising if you are familiar with Japanese culture.

[htuttle]

1. "Karoshi"

It happens so often there, they have a special word for it.

[WriteDown]

4. Yeah, that can't be a good a thing

:)

[Doctor Cynic]

2. Toyota: we put our life into it. n/t

[WriteDown]

3. Haha...

So wrong, but so funny. :)

[Hayduke Lives]

10. I guess there's blood on my hands

I drive the car he built.

I'll say this, the engineering in that car is amazing. It's a big heavy sedan and yet I averaged 42.6 miles per gallon on my long road trip last weekend.

He died that others may take cheap vacations. Bless his soul.

[guitar man]

5. I think my brother is going to do the same thing someday

That description of working nights weekends etc. is him to a tee. :(

[Blue_Tires]

6. wow...

didn't he have anyone in his life to tell him to slow down? if anything, even most bosses will tell you to take time off, because his work quality had to have suffered after a few 80-hour weeks...

[WriteDown]

7. The scenario you are describing...

would never happen with a Japanese company. "Slow down" is not in the managements vocabulary.

[heliarc]

8. Although "call a meeting"

is definitely in the vocabulary. There is more teamwork there than I have ever seen anywhere else. I wouldn't be surprised if he HAD to work weekends and overtime because he had to go to 10 3 hour "planning meetings" a week. And it is very common for the upper management not speaking to sleep through these meetings.

[DainBramaged]

9. Working to death is the norm in Japanese companies

When I worked for them in the 80's and 90's (and DID NOT own one of their cars) they expected us (management) to come in on Saturday to make reports and 'prepare' for next week's work.

We basically told them to go fuck themselves.

[WriteDown]

12. I've worked for both the Japanese and the Germans

You are spot on with your meeting anecdote. Work is regimented and you are expected to be always on the clock. Family should not be your concern.

The German company I worked for may have been even worse. I worked for a terminal block company for several years. The German division started at 10 weeks vacation with an amazing amount of payed holidays. The North American division started you with 7 days vacation and most federal holidays. You would call the German office and no one would pick up. That wasn't so bad, but they would complain to no end when we were out of the office for any holidays. I remember a loud and confrontational conference call when the office was closed for MLK day. Thinking about it still makes my blood boil.

[Neuronix]

11. I wonder just how many hours...

Medical residents in the USA are forced to work a "maximum" of 80 hours a week. This is not enforced, and since there are also no whistleblower protections, they often work more than this. This continues for as long as 10 years to become a board certified physician. I wonder how this fellow compared?

When will the general public stand up against that inhumanity on our own soil I wonder?

[Bosso 63]

13. With proper discipline joy ceases to be necessary .

[dysfunctional press]

14. sucks to be him...

people who dedicate their lives to their employers are some of the biggest idiots out there; unless of course they're self-employed.

[Tindalos]

15. Yeah, this is pretty common there.

When I was there last year, I was working 14 hour days/ 7 days a week. And I was a slacker compared to my Japanese co-workers.

[joeglow3]

16. Averaged 80 hours of overtime a MONTH

Not a big deal and something many of us are forced to do here year round. I remember the days of mandatory 55 hour work weeks for 3 months during tax season. MANY of those weeks were 80-100 hours and there were MANY more long work weeks like that during the rest of the year.

[WriteDown]

17. You're right joeglow3....

I work a minimum of 60 hours a month in OT. But knowing Japanese culture, I imagine that there was tons of other time that he just simply not report probably because he thought he was helping his superiors and his company which is greatly praised in Japan.

As to the previous post asking if there was anyone in his life who was asking him to slow down, it is much more likely that his friends and relatives encouraged him to work even more.