Gov't to revoke Japan Post license for lax driver alcohol tests
The government on Thursday notified Japan Post Co of its plan to revoke the company's license to operate some 2,500 of its freight delivery vans and trucks after many post offices failed to properly check if drivers had consumed alcohol.
License revocation is the most serious administrative penalty available to authorities under the motor truck transportation business law. It is rare for a major operator to face such a severe punishment and it means Japan Post will not be able to reacquire the license for five years.
The notification came after the Tokyo-based operator said in April that 75 percent of its 3,188 post offices nationwide had failed to properly conduct mandatory roll calls to check whether delivery drivers had alcohol in their system.
A special audit conducted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism found many post offices subject to the probe were found to have falsified roll call records, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The ministry's Kanto District Transport Bureau will hear opinions regarding the penalty from Japan Post on June 18.
"It is a serious incident concerning the future existence (of our service). We will carefully examine the effects on our customers and businesses and promptly consider specific measures to be taken," said Japan Post, operator of the Yu-Pack parcel delivery service.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference that the case is "extremely regrettable, as it could jeopardize safe transportation."
The ministry said it found 82 post offices had violated laws after inspecting 119 offices flagged by Japan Post for improper conduct.
The ministry will also consider ordering Japan Post to suspend the use of approximately 32,000 vans and other vehicles. Some 83,000 motorcycles that are mainly used for mail delivery are not subject to the motor truck transportation business law.
According to Japan Post, one driver was found to be intoxicated after consuming wine while on duty in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, while another crashed into a fence after drinking on the job in Saitama Prefecture.
© KYODO
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Mainichi
14 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Japan brokerages donating shareholder perks to help kids in poverty
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese securities firms are donating the food and beverage gifts they receive as shareholder perks through their trading activities to nonprofit organizations to support children living in poverty amid inflation. The Japan Securities Dealers Association started the program in 2020, and around 2,300 donations had been made by March this year. Under the program, a list of shareholder perks is presented to registered organizations channeling the goods to recipients each week and the organizations then convey their requests to the securities firms. As of April, 61 companies and 48 organizations had registered with the program. Around 11 tons of rice and 8,600 liters of beverages have been donated, with rice and ready-made foods such as curry among the popular products. IwaiCosmo Securities Co. previously distributed shareholder perks to younger employees via a lottery as part of its welfare program, but now donates rice and canned goods to organizations. The Osaka-based brokerage has received feedback that its donations were delivered to single-mother households and served at a gathering of children. "We feel it is significant that goods are being used by people who really need them," a company official said. Monex Inc. has been donating shareholder perks to various organizations across the country since 2024, with an official saying it intends to continue using the program as it is difficult to find recipients on its own. NPO Bridge for Smile, which supports children and young people who cannot rely on their parents, receives donations of food and disaster stockpiles on a regular basis through the program. "As there are some people who only have one meal a day due to soaring rice prices, we are grateful that it helps them survive," said Ryuta Suzuki, a member of the group.
Kyodo News
15 hours ago
- Kyodo News
Japan brokerages donating shareholder perks to help kids in poverty
KYODO NEWS - 1 hour ago - 09:55 | All, Japan Japanese securities firms are donating the food and beverage gifts they receive as shareholder perks through their trading activities to nonprofit organizations to support children living in poverty amid inflation. The Japan Securities Dealers Association started the program in 2020, and around 2,300 donations had been made by March this year. Under the program, a list of shareholder perks is presented to registered organizations channeling the goods to recipients each week and the organizations then convey their requests to the securities firms. As of April, 61 companies and 48 organizations had registered with the program. Around 11 tons of rice and 8,600 liters of beverages have been donated, with rice and ready-made foods such as curry among the popular products. IwaiCosmo Securities Co. previously distributed shareholder perks to younger employees via a lottery as part of its welfare program, but now donates rice and canned goods to organizations. The Osaka-based brokerage has received feedback that its donations were delivered to single-mother households and served at a gathering of children. "We feel it is significant that goods are being used by people who really need them," a company official said. Monex Inc. has been donating shareholder perks to various organizations across the country since 2024, with an official saying it intends to continue using the program as it is difficult to find recipients on its own. NPO Bridge for Smile, which supports children and young people who cannot rely on their parents, receives donations of food and disaster stockpiles on a regular basis through the program. "As there are some people who only have one meal a day due to soaring rice prices, we are grateful that it helps them survive," said Ryuta Suzuki, a member of the group. Related coverage: FEATURE: Japan's childless elderly turning wealth into goodwill Entrepreneur launches support service for int'l school kids in Japan
Japan Times
15 hours ago
- Japan Times
Japan highlights wage hikes as cornerstone of economic growth strategy
Japan's government has highlighted wage hikes as a cornerstone of its economic growth strategy, according to a draft of its planned basic policy on economy, public finances and reform. In the draft submitted at a meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy on Friday, the government said that the three decades of the country's cost-cutting economy is coming to an end. Seeing wage hikes as a key part of its growth strategy, the government vowed to realize pay raises that exceed price increases in a stable way. The government aims to gain Cabinet approval in mid-June for the first such basic policy under Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's administration, launched in October last year. "We'll do everything we can to prepare for immediate risks while beefing up the growth potential of both the Japanese economy across areas throughout the country, in order to ensure that we transition into a growth-oriented economy without falling back into deflation," Ishiba told the meeting. In the draft, the government effectively pushed back its target for achieving a primary budget surplus to fiscal 2025-2026. The target of turning the primary balance at the central and local governments into a surplus had been set at fiscal 2025 since fiscal 2018. The government said that it will seek to boost take-home pay through wage hikes, not through tax cuts. The draft includes a target of stably achieving annual real wage growth of about 1% in the Japanese economy as a whole over the five years to fiscal 2029. Aiming to help secure funding to raise wages at smaller companies, which employ about 70% of all workers in Japan, the government will promote its five-year plan on the issue. Under the plan, the government will ensure that the public and private sectors invest about ¥60 trillion to enhance productivity, according to the draft. Individual support will also be given to 12 industries facing serious labor shortages, such as the restaurant and accommodation sectors. The government promised to continue efforts to raise minimum wages so that the national average will reach ¥1,500 by the end of the 2020s. The envisaged establishment of a disaster management agency, a key policy of the Ishiba administration, is eyed for fiscal 2026, the government said. The new body will serve as a command center for the country's disaster reduction and response efforts. It will have a dedicated minister and the authority to issue recommendations to other government agencies. To tackle soaring rice prices, the government pledged to implement comprehensive measures, including steps to facilitate the distribution of government-stockpiled rice. It also vowed to review its paddy field policy in details to secure a stable food supply.
