Japanese Firms in the Area Plan Image Building : * Commerce: The public relations effort, which will be directed at their U.S. employees as well as the community at large, is aimed at countering anti-Japanese sentiment.

Japanese firms in Southern California, stung by what they perceive as growing anti-Japanese sentiment among consumers as well as criticism from their American workers, are taking steps to rebuild their image.

The Japan Business Assn. of Southern California, which represents 700 companies, plans a public relations campaign to counter the negative climate. It already has collected $1.5 million for the project.

The group plans to produce a video that stresses the contributions Japanese-owned companies make to communities in the United States, such as jobs and charitable activities. Japanese companies can show the video to employees, and it will be provided to schools, community groups and others who request it.

Takashi Kiuchi, president of the Los Angeles-based association, also said the video will be shown to government officials in Tokyo to stress the “positive experiences” of Japanese companies operating in the United States.

The campaign comes amid a highly charged international trade debate in an election year. Executives of many Japanese companies say they now face questions from their employees about inflammatory comments made about America in Japan.

Last month, Japanese House Speaker Yoshio Sakurauchi angered many Americans when he said American workers were lazy, unproductive and illiterate. Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa fueled the controversy when he suggested two weeks later that Americans lack a work ethic.

Kiuchi, who is also chairman of Cypress-based Mitsubishi Electronics America Inc., said Japanese executives in the Southland are angry and embarrassed by “unsubstantiated” criticisms about the work habits of Americans.

“Those comments (from Tokyo) . . . are embarrassing not only to me but for the two countries,” added Yoshinori Taura, president of Mazda Motor of America Inc. in Irvine.

Nationally, the controversy sparked a “Buy America” push, especially in the automobile industry.

In some factories, Japanese executives say, the flap has pitted Japanese managers against their American employees. While there were incidents of Japan bashing the last two decades, many executives say it has reached a level of hysteria they’ve not seen before.

They say it may be more intense because it has coincided with events such as the 50th anniversary of Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor and the recession.

“Certainly, negative statements from Tokyo hurt us, and it causes a lot of tension in the work place and it makes our situation here difficult,” said Akio Kigoshi, a spokesman for Hitachi Chemical Research Center in Irvine.

“There’s a lot of myth about the customs and work ethics of both countries, but if you live in either of these countries, you’ll find that American workers and researchers work very hard,” he said.

Mitsubishi’s Kiuchi said his company’s employees have started writing and calling him in the past month, asking his opinion about the statements of Miyazawa and Sakurauchi. Mitsubishi Electronics has 1,000 employees in Orange County and 5,000 nationwide.

“They asked if I thought the same way,” Kiuchi said. “I said those Japanese officials are out of touch with reality.”