According to a survey by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Welfare, a record number of claims for damages from work-related metal diseases, including those caused by harassment, were approved in fiscal year 2020.
The number of cases of mental illness accepted by Workers’ Compensation rose 99 year-over-year to 608 in the year that ended in March, up for the second year in a row, Wednesday’s poll found.
Of the total cases, 99 were attributed to so-called power harassment or bullying by superiors, which was clearly defined as the cause of metal disorders in June 2020. Accidents and disasters were mentioned in 83 cases, followed by assaults and harassment by colleagues in 71 cases and changes in the quality and quantity of work in 58 cases.
By age group, 174 requests for compensation were approved by workers in their 40s, while 30 year olds received 169 requests and 20 year olds received 132 requests.
Many of them were employees, nurses, midwives, registered nurses or people who worked in care facilities.
Among the approved compensation cases, the total number of suicides and suicide attempts was 81, up from 88 the previous year.
The survey also found that the number of heart and brain disease cases approved for compensation has fallen by 22 to 194 thanks to work style reforms promoted by the coronavirus pandemic. The total was 67 overwork deaths, 19 fewer.
Many people affected by these diseases were drivers and salespeople in their 1940s and 1950s, the survey found.
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