Advertising giant Dentsu Inc. admitted Friday that it was responsible for the 1991 suicide of a 24-year-old employee who had become depressed due to overwork and agreed to pay the family about 168 million yen in compensation to settle the case, a lawyer for the family said.
The settlement, first proposed by the Tokyo High Court in May, marks the first time a company has accepted blame for the suicide of an employee apparently caused by depression from overwork.
After agreeing to the compromise, Dentsu Inc. said it deeply regrets the suicide of Ichiro Oshima and will take measures to prevent similar deaths by thoroughly monitoring employees' working and health conditions.