The plight of overworked Japanese employees was highlighted at the weekend when it emerged that a policeman had stabbed himself in the stomach and tried to make it look like an assault so that he could take time off work.
Tomoyuki Mukaide, an assistant inspector, had worked for two months without a break after an earthquake that struck Ishikawa prefecture in north-west Japan on March 25.
Colleagues said Mukaide (44) had struggled to cope with assisting hundreds of people. He stabbed himself with a fruit knife at his home in nearby Kanazawa on May 23. But he told police he had been attacked when he opened his front door to a stranger, sparking an investigation into attempted murder.
Investigators were suspicious because he had waited an hour before reporting the incident. When they failed to find any witnesses, Mukaide admitted he had invented the story because he could not face going to work. Mukaide, who was treated for minor injuries, is being investigated for filing a false report.
Long working hours and unsympathetic bosses are taking their toll on Japanese workers. Last month it was reported that 205 employees got compensation for work-related mental health problems last year, a jump of 65% from 2005. The number who committed suicide for similar reasons rose from 42 in 2005 to a record 65. – Guardian Unlimited Â