Japan wants to cut overwork deaths to zero, but new PM stands in the way

The head of Japan’s largest umbrella group for labour unions on Thursday countered Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s wish to ease restrictions on overtime work, warning that it will go against the recent push for workstyle reforms.

“It is unacceptable,” Tomoko Yoshino told a press conference after Takaichi instructed her labour minister to consider relaxing the rules.

Before becoming prime minister on Tuesday, Takaichi caused a stir when she vowed to dispense with the phrase “work-life balance” when it comes to herself and have those around her “work like draft horses”.

“We cannot allow the upper limit to be eased,” Rengo chief Yoshino said, adding that it is already near the threshold that heightened the risks of death from overwork.

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Sanae Takaichi becomes Japan’s first female prime minister

Sanae Takaichi becomes Japan’s first female prime minister

Since 2019, Japan has imposed restrictions on overtime work, setting the maximum allowed limit to 720 hours a year or below 100 hours a month if work on holidays is included.