Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

NHK Employee Logged 159 Hours of Overtime in One Month Before Dying of Heart Failure at Age 31

posted by mrpg on Friday October 06 2017, @05:09AM   Printer-friendly
from the NEET-or-DEATH dept.

takyon writes:

An NHK employee died at age 31 after logging 159 hours of overtime and taking just two days off in the month before her death due to heart failure:

Japan has again been forced to confront its work culture after labour inspectors ruled that the death of a 31-year-old employee of the country's public broadcaster, NHK, had been caused by overwork.

Miwa Sado, who worked at the broadcaster's headquarters in Tokyo, logged 159 hours of overtime and took only two days off in the month leading up to her death from heart failure in July 2013.

A labour standards office in Tokyo later attributed her death to karoshi (death from overwork) but her case was only made public by her former employer this week. Sado's death is expected to increase pressure on Japanese authorities to address the large number of deaths attributed to the punishingly long hours expected of many employees.

The article mentions other instances of "karoshi", which can lead to heart failure, stroke, or suicide.

Miwa Sado was a political reporter for Japan's national public broadcaster NHK covering Tokyo and National Diet elections prior to her death. Japan, and particularly Tokyo, has been noted for the apathy of its voters.

Also at CNN and the Asahi Shimbun.

Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
NHK Employee Logged 159 Hours of Overtime in One Month Before Dying of Heart Failure at Age 31 | Log In/Create an Account | Top | 38 comments | Search Discussion
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.

  • (Score: 3, Funny) by looorg on Friday October 06 2017, @08:34AM (4 children)

    by looorg (578) on Friday October 06 2017, @08:34AM (#577885)

    What? I assume it's some kind of keyboard slippage but I can't really figure out what it is actually supposed to say -- unless it's actually supposed to say National Diet elections in which case I wonder what that is. Do they get together every 5th year and decide that it's going to be Rice and Tuna for the next five years again like it has been for the last few centuries?

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Funny=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Funny' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  
    Total Score:   3  

  • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @08:41AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @08:41AM (#577887)

    The National Diet is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under parallel voting systems.

    • (Score: 2) by fritsd on Friday October 06 2017, @03:21PM (1 child)

      by fritsd (4586) on Friday October 06 2017, @03:21PM (#578054) Journal

      Speaking of "House of Representatives", I read something weird the other day on the Guardian:

      That Puerto Rico has a person in the US House of Representatives, but that person is not allowed to represent them (i.e. I mean has no power to vote).
      Is'nt that odd?

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @04:48PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06 2017, @04:48PM (#578114)

        D.C. has the same. Their rep is Eleanor Holmes Norton.

  • (Score: 2) by fritsd on Friday October 06 2017, @03:18PM

    by fritsd (4586) on Friday October 06 2017, @03:18PM (#578050) Journal

    It's an old word, named after the Diet of Worms.