Many White-Collar Japanese Fear They’ll Die of Overwork

Nearly half of Japan’s salaried employees are afraid their jobs will drive them to early deaths, a survey reported today found.

Fukoku Life Insurance Co. conducted the survey in October among 500 employees with more than 15 years at the same companies in metropolitan Tokyo.

Its results indicated that the fabled workaholicism of Japanese white-collar employees takes its toll: Many dread and fear their jobs.

“These people with no interest in their job and relationship seem to drag themselves to work everyday,” the survey researchers concluded.

The poll revealed a strong fear of karoshi --death from overwork. Researchers have said the number of such deaths among married Japanese businessmen is growing.

Dr. Kiyoyasu Arikawa, who advises executives on how to reduce their risk, said the number of karoshi grew from 10 in 1969 to about 150 in 1987.

The Labor Ministry received 777 applications for compensation because of “sudden death” at work, up from about 500 requests three years ago.

About 70% of the respondents in the survey said they feel “stressed,” 44.4% “feel constant fatigue,” 28% have “no creativity and motivation” and 23.3% feel “a frequent desire to call in sick.”

Asked whether they fear death as a result of overwork, 42.8% said yes.

Fierce competition among employees and a strong sense of responsibility to their companies lead many workers to stay at the office well into the night and refuse to take all their vacation time.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents to the survey take fewer than 10 days of vacation a year.

Although Japanese employees are said to have a strong sense of company loyalty, three out of 10 respondents said 15 years with the same firm is a “long” time.

To ease work-related fatigue, 85.3% of respondents said they “just want to sleep more.”