日本的“过劳”与“过劳死”问题:原因、对策与启示

Causes,Countermeasures,and Implications of Overwork and Karoshi Phenomenon in Japan

因劳动强度大、工作时间长、心理压力过重等导致长时间疲劳状态,继而引发一系列身心健康问题的“过劳”以致危及生命的“过劳死”现象由来已久。日本是西方国家中“过劳死”现象高发的国家,特别是在20世纪七八十年代,“过劳死”事件频发,引发社会各界关注。终身雇佣和年功序列制度、性别分工模式、非正规雇佣劳动者的生存困境、日本企业根深蒂固的“加班文化”等是“过劳”产生的主要原因。为防范这一严峻的社会问题,日本政府和民间采取了多种对策,包括:充实和完善防范“过劳死”的相关法律,细化“过劳死”工伤赔偿认定标准,普及正确的劳动观,推进工作方式改革等,这一系列对策使得日本的“过劳”问题得到一定程度的缓解。日本的“过劳”和“过劳死”对策对中国具有一定的启示意义。

The long-term fatigue caused by high labor intensity,long working hours,and excessive psychological pressure leads to the persistent overwork phenomenon which poses a serious threat to people's lives.As a country with a high incidence rate of karoshi in western countries,the phenomenon of overwork and karoshi has lasted for a long time in Japan.Especially in the 1970s and 1980s,the frequent occurrence of karoshi in Japan attracted much attention of the wide public.The system of lifetime employment,the seniority system,the gender division of labor,the survival difficulties of informally employed workers,and the deep-rooted overtime culture of Japanese companies are the main reasons for the phenomenon of overwork.In order to solve this serious social problem,the Japanese government and the private sector have adopted a variety of countermeasures:enriching and improving relevant laws to prevent karoshi,formulating and refining the identification standard of regarding karoshi as a kind of work-related injury that should be compensated,popularizing correct concept of labor,promoting the reform of working methods and so on.A series of such countermeasureshave alleviated Japan's overwork problem to a certain extent.Japan's countermeasures against overwork and karoshi have some implications for China.