Japanese employee fined over $11,000 for taking smoke breaks during work hours

A 61-year-old Japanese government worker was recently punished for smoking more than 4,500 times throughout his 14-year career. He received a punishment of about $11,000 for smoking during working hours, according to the Straits Times.

According to the report, the government employee, along with two coworkers in the prefecture's finance department, were subjected to severe punishment by the Osaka authorities. They also imposed a 10 per cent pay cut for six months for repeatedly smoking during work hours despite multiple warnings.

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The human resources department learned about the group's covert tobacco storage in September 2022 thanks to a report from an unidentified source. The three were called by their boss, who also threatened to discipline them if they were found smoking again. However, when questioned in December 2022, the three continued to smoke and gave false information.

Osaka has some of the strictest smoking regulations in the world, and in 2008 it outlawed smoking entirely inside of public buildings like workplaces and classrooms. Additionally, since 2019 there has been a prohibition on smoking by government workers while they are on the job.

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In response to the punishment, some people claimed that having to leave the premises for a cigarette would have resulted in more time wasted, while others thought the fine was excessive, arguing that since people can squander time by talking, sipping tea, and consuming snacks, smoking tobacco shouldn't be punished either.

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• Japan
• Japanese employee
• Osaka
• government employee
• smoke breaks
• smoking