The reality of Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun, where many employees have left the company and committed illegal acts due to the “power harassment” of management.

The Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun (headquartered in Obihiro City, President Hiroshi Hayashi), one of the oldest newspapers in Hokkaido with over 100 years of publication, has been experiencing a number of violations of the law due to “power harassment-like” behavior by management toward employees, this magazine has learned. Mr. A, then a department manager in his fifties who worked at the Tokyo branch office, opened his mouth with a heavy heart.

I was subjected to really severe power harassment by a senior employee of the company I was working for at the time, and for a while I even broke my body. I consulted with the appropriate department of the company, but they didn’t do what they said they would do, so I was forced to leave the company.

The Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun, an evening newspaper first published in 1919 and nicknamed “Kachimai,” has a larger readership in the Tokachi region than the Hokkaido Shimbun, which has the largest circulation in Hokkaido.

Mr. A, who worked at the Tokyo branch of this long-established Hokkaido newspaper, was suddenly reprimanded by the executive officer and head of the Tokyo branch, in front of other employees, at a welcome party for his transfer from Obihiro to Tokyo in March 1948.

You get paid too much. You should be prepared to do 100 or 1,000 door-to-door sales calls.

About a month later, he was given a further reprimand: “If your boss says you have to do it, you have to do it.

If your boss tells you to do something, you do it,” he said. Sales is all about numbers.

In August of the same year, Mr. A complained to the company’s harassment committee, but his complaint was dismissed as “within the scope of work guidance.

He then asked for another meeting of the Harassment Committee, but the meeting was never held.

After the Harassment Committee did not find any power harassment, the company told me that they were going to transfer the executive officer,” he said.

While there are other employees besides myself who have been victims of power harassment, the executive officer is taking advantage of his position to do whatever he wants.”

In May 2010, the president’s office manager was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. Some people within the company said that although this was an illegal act that would never be tolerated, the general manager was troubled by the power harassment from his superiors (apart from the Tokyo branch manager).

Furthermore, in January of this year, the deputy director of the sales bureau, who should be leading the effort to eradicate drunk driving, received an administrative penalty of license revocation.

FRIDAY Digital is trying to confirm the facts.
(1) Are the Tokyo branch manager’s comments to Mr. A not power harassment?
(ii) Why is the company not responding to the request to reopen the Harassment Committee?
(iii) Was there any power harassment by management toward the president’s office manager?
(iv) Was the deputy director of the Sales Department’s license revoked due to drunk driving?
The Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun sent a letter of inquiry on 10 items, including the following.

Tokachi Mainichi Shimbun responded, “We have reached a conclusion after conducting an investigation based on our company’s regulations, but we would like to refrain from giving an answer because the matter involves personal information and privacy.

The newspaper did not answer whether or not specific facts existed, and it is questionable whether or not it is fulfilling its responsibilities as a news organization. If the management of any company shows an attitude of being “too soft on themselves and too hard on others,” employees will lose interest, and it will be difficult for the company to survive as an organization in this turbulent world.