President Kazuyoshi Kobayashi of Corona Corp., a major heating equipment manufacturer in Sanjo, Niigata Prefecture, posted an advertisement in the morning edition of the Niigata Nippo newspaper on Saturday, expressing his wish for his employees' children to be proud of their parents, who work for the company.
The children have reportedly been suffering from the fact that the name of their parents' workplace has been associated with the new coronavirus. The message was carried in response to statements from some employees, such as, "My child is feeling blue." The president also plans to send letters with the same kind of message to about 2,300 employees of the company.
A part of the message reads: "I'm really sorry if you have a hard time or get offended because of your family working for Corona. Both you and your family are not wrong at all. We are proud of our name, Corona, and our job. Your proud family is also a proud member of the company's family." It is written in basic hiragana and katakana characters to make it easy for children to read.
The company has not confirmed any case of reputational damage to its products or discrimination against its employees and their families stemming from the spread of the virus. The president, however, decided to send the letters to encourage his employees and their families. President Kobayashi reportedly said he wants to inspire them by dispelling concerns and answering questions from their children.
The company's name was created by associating an image of blue flame on an oil stove to the sun's corona, aiming to make the name familiar to people. It was registered as a trademark in 1935.
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