Nationwide telephone consultations are provided free of charge to address concerns such as workplace harassment and long working hours.
Telephone consultations are provided by the National Liaison Committee of the National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, which supports victims of occupational accidents and their families, and consultations are received at the Tokyo office immediately after the start at 10 a.m.
In response to a consultation from a woman who said that she was feeling sick due to harassment such as being touched by an employee of a business partner, the counselor advised her to report the damage to her employer and have her deal with it.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 710 people were recognized as work-related injuries as mental disorders such as depression due to strong work stress and long working hours last fiscal year, the highest number since the survey began in fiscal 1983.
In September, the criteria for recognizing occupational accidents in the event of depression were revised and added to the category that should be considered for "customer harassment" and responses to infectious diseases that carry risks.
Osamu Amano of the NPO Tokyo Occupational Safety and Health Center said, "Stressors in the workplace, such as labor shortages and responses to the corona disaster, are increasing, and harassment is increasing.
The telephone consultation number is "9-0120-631" and is accepted free of charge from 202 am to 9 pm on the 10th and 10th.