Opinion It'S Not Worth It! By DAVID ZOPPETTI	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
死ぬなんてもったいない！ 死ぬなんてもったいない！ 筆者が初めて日本に来たころ 日本では「過労死」が問題になっていた。 ビジネスマンが働きすぎて死ぬというケースは 最近は少ないようだが、別の形での 「ビジネスマンの死」が増えている。

Life can be quite ironic. I remember that during my first years in Japan, in the mid '80s, one of the most dramatic problems the country faced was that of karoshi, or people dying from overwork. Since then, almost 15 years have passed, and Japan is by no means the booming economy it used to be. If there is any positive aspect to this slump, let us hope it will be that karoshi has become an obsolete word.

But now something just as saddening is happening. According to the latest Population Survey Report released by the Welfare Ministry in June, the number of people who committed suicide last year reached a unprecedented level of more than 30,000. That's more than three times the number of people who died in traffic accidents during the same period. There is one category of people where one especially notices an important increase in suicides: men in their mid-50s.

Although it is difficult to pinpoint the reasons behind these acts of despair, in most cases sudden layoffs or a general state of anxiety related to feelings of professional insecurity seems to be the main factor. Moreover, the almost perfect symmetry between the graphs of unemployment and of suicides in Japan for these past 10 years indicates that there is a strong correlation between the two.

So you get my point. We emerged from a situation where people were killing themselves working too much, to enter one where people are killing themselves because they cannot work.

Of all countries, workers in Japan are probably among the most badly prepared to deal emotionally with the hardships of recession. After enjoying lifetime employment and a payroll system where wages increased in relation to seniority rather than productivity for decades, they find things are suddenly changing.

I once was on the dole myself for quite some time in Switzerland and although I didn't have a family to support, it still was a very distressing situation. So I certainly do not underestimate what these people are going through. But I say it's not worth it. Life doesn't end because you are temporarily out of a job or forced to retire early.

If you feel symptoms of depression (loss of confidence, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, unexplained headaches, digestion problems, whatever!) go and talk to a doctor. There is nothing wrong or embarrassing about feeling distressed. The next step might be to realize that it is not your value as a human being that is at stake here, but that you are one of the many victims of the present state of the economy.

Why not use this time to think about what your dreams were before you got swept into the frenzy of professional life? This might be a great opportunity to realize them. Or else travel, discover new horizons. You are receiving an unemployment allowance, after all.

And to the younger people I say, this is a time to think about what the real values in life are! Don't put all your eggs in the same basket. Try to balance your professional and private lives better than your elders did.

Spending more time with family and friends, and having hobbies other than work may not lead to promotion or a higher salary, but they are great sources of moral support both in times of happiness and of difficulty.

Shukan ST: Oct. 8, 1999

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