Death by Overwork Casts Shadow Over Tokyo Olympics Stadium
- Construction worker commits suicide after excessive overtime
- Incident yet another example of overwork-related death
Ongoing construction at Japan's National Stadium in April 2017.
Photographer: AFP via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Japan’s unforgiving work culture has claimed another life, this time at the new Tokyo stadium for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
A 23-year-old worker killed himself after disappearing from the work site in March, according to his lawyer and employer, Sanshin Corp. He had logged more than 190 hours of overtime in February at the construction company, a builder of foundations for large structures and subcontractor for Taisei Corp. The Tokyo Labor Bureau confirmed the suicide was linked to overwork, the Nikkei newspaper reported.