The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has revealed that 125 foreign workers lost their lives in work-related accidents in the 10 years through 2017. The ministry will call on companies to thoroughly implement safety measures to protect foreign workers, some of whom may lack the Japanese language skills necessary to fully understand work and safety procedures.
Between 2008 and 2017, six to 19 foreign nationals died in work-related incidents each year, according to the ministry. In 2017, the number of casualties was nearly 2,500 including 15 deaths.
A conspicuous number of such incidents occurred in the construction and manufacturing sectors, including workers falling from heights, being pulled into machinery or hit by vehicles. Technical interns were also among the victims.
The ministry plans to promote the use of multilingual guidelines to improve safety and also urge industries to provide working environments in which foreign workers can properly understand work and safety procedures.
The number of foreign workers with residence status has been limited to certain professions such as medical doctors. However, to address current labor shortages, revision of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law is being debated in the extraordinary Diet session, which is likely to lead to an increase in the number of foreign workers.
Shoichi Ibusuki, a lawyer with detailed knowledge of labor issues involving foreign nationals, said there have been cases in which employers have tried to conceal work-related accidents when affected families lacked Japanese language ability or an understanding of the compensation system.
"The government needs to scrutinize each fatal case, investigate the causes and reinforce its monitoring and guidance of industries," he said.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
