Bureaucrats with psychosomatic illness March 2 21:31

"One of my colleagues working together has taken a leave of absence."
"I visited a government building and my bureaucrat's son died on a bed." (71-year-old mother)
This is a realistic view of bureaucrats working insomnia and restless. (Kasumigaseki Real Interview Group Maho Arakawa)

Four people at once in the same section ...

A woman in her 30s, working for a ministry, described what happened in her section.

"Over the past two years, four colleagues have taken leave of absence from the diagnosis of" depression. "Some of them were new female bureaucrats who were close to them. I didn't have time to go to lunch and I couldn't hear any trouble ... "

I've repeatedly told you about Kasumigaseki's hard work, but it's a serious problem to take this leave all at once. However, when I asked other bureaucrats, I was surprised to see if I was used to such a situation.

"Honestly, I'm not surprised" (20's)
"Oh, has that person gone ..." (30's)
"I think tomorrow is my body." (30's)

I couldn't say it was hard

Meanwhile, a female bureaucrat in her twenties, who is currently on leave, has sent such an email to our site.

When I asked them to tell me more, I was told that they weren't in good shape yet, so they responded to the interview.

It was not long after she entered that her body had been modulated. I was in charge of dealing with the Diet in the lead section of the assigned bureau. In addition to the hard work, the senior chief, who was the “instructor,” was absent because of the support of other departments. There was another senior who followed me, but I was worried that there were no people nearby to talk to.

Female bureaucracy (20's)
"I think the whole room was busy, but I was a newcomer, but my boss told me," Have you read the Law Book? " I didn't know how to deal with the details, but it was really hard ... "

When late, he worked until 5:30 in the morning and sometimes stayed in the province. 10 months after working. After suffering from vomiting and other problems, my doctor diagnosed me as "depressed." It is said that he returned to work but is still taking leave. I asked her, "Why did you push me so far?"

"I thought I couldn't do it myself anymore, but among seniors and people who worked 120 hours or 140 hours overtime, there was no option for me not to work alone. I have been patiently unconscious. ''

Without returning to work ...

As I continued the interview, some bureaucrats (Mr. A) died of illness at the age of 32 due to repeated absences from mental illness.

In 2007, Mr. A joined the ministry he was looking for at the age of 25. He said that he was motivated to work in the country. A colleague at the time also testified, "It was like a mood maker with a strong sense of responsibility and even in the section." However, as hard work continued, she began sending emails to her mother.

(Email: received at 1:50 am)
"It's hard every day after the department changes. It may sound exaggerated, but it's hard to die and I would like to be able to change jobs."

A few months later, I will take a leave of absence after receiving a diagnosis from a doctor for "adaptation disorder". He returned to work but did not return to his physical condition.

And September 2015. When the mother visited the government office room to deliver meals to her son, the son was lying in bed. I thought I was just sleeping, but I was not breathing anymore. Subarachnoid hemorrhage.

In response to the interview, her mother shook her voice and answered:

(mother)
"My son sent me emails and was caring on my birthday. When I passed the ministry exam, I cried and rejoiced. My illness was related to my workload. I'm still not convinced why this happened ... "

Leave of absence for mental illness, increasing trend

A state servant who is being hunted down, both mentally and physically. It supports the data.

According to the National Personnel Authority, more than 3,800 people have been off work for one month or more due to mental illness such as depression in 2017, and this has been increasing in the past three years. The ratio of all staff is 1.39%. In contrast, the result of a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare on private companies was 0.4%.

There are laws and regulations ...

What are the legislation that protects the working style of national government employees?

It is called the rules of the National Personnel Authority and is not a labor standards law applicable to private companies. In accordance with this year's work style reform, this rule also stipulates an upper limit for overtime work of 45 hours a month, but unlike the Labor Standards Law, there are no penalties.

In addition, there is an exception that departments with a high proportion of other duties can work overtime for less than 100 hours per month, and it is actually the responsibility of each ministry to decide where to place such departments.

What hunts down? Experts

How do the staff feel? We asked Professor Wataru Kitamura of Osaka University that he surveyed about 200 staff members from six ministries, including the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

"When asked about the changes in work over the past two or three years, 70% of the respondents said that their work volume is increasing and that they are becoming more complex and sophisticated. The number of partnerships is increasing, societal issues are becoming more complex, and the number of large-scale disasters is increasing, but the number of staff is decreasing.

Professor Kitamura also pointed out:

"Furthermore, more than 70% of respondents say that they are prepared to make sacrifices for society, while 90% of respondents say that bureaucracy is declining." There are many bureaucrats who feel desperate for their public service and are not rewarded for their social reputation. "

Please tell us about your experience

Now, Kasumigaseki is in a state of “sleeplessness and restlessness” in response to the new coronavirus. Even if I'm interviewing, I'm really worried.

When you ask bureaucrats, you hear these voices.
"If you rest for mental reasons, you can be labeled as a weak guy" (30's)
"Some people can't stand the boss or outside power harassment."

How about around you? Please send your own experiences to the special site "Kasumigaseki no Real".