Earlier this month, a shocking survey result was announced. The survey, conducted by work-style consultancy Work Life Balance Co. on 480 public servants between March and May, revealed that a distressing number of bureaucrats in government ministries have been logging overtime at a level that could cause death from overwork.
Due particularly to the spread of COVID-19, some 40 percent of the officials surveyed who work in the bureaucratic ground zero of Tokyo’s Kasumigaseki district have been putting in a whopping 100 hours of overtime or more per month.
Many workers at Japanese firms were once considered "corporate warriors" who spent more time in the office than at home. But now, the concept of work-life balance has gradually penetrated the private sector, and the recent pandemic has also forced businesses across a wide spectrum to accept telework and other flexible work styles. It is now time to review the work style of government employees to improve efficiency.