No “Naoki Hanzawa” in Japan ~半沢直樹は日本にはいない~
2/15/2014
“It’s tit for tat. I’ll hit back twice as much.” Many Japanese, irrespective of age and sex, were seen to say the words last year. As is well known, it was the telling phrase used occasionally by the main character of TV drama “Naoki Hanzawa” broadcast by TBS. Hanzawa, a bank clerk, stands up against his outrageous boss and company. The drama won a high viewer rating perhaps because his resolute attitude struck a chord with the audiences, especially office workers. Many who cannot oppose their unreasonable boss might have vented their pent-up frustration by projecting their own life onto that of the courageous hero.
「やられたらやりかえす、倍返しだ！」 昨年、老若男女を問わず、多数の人が口にした言葉だ。ご存知のようにＴＢＳ系列で放送されたドラマ「半沢直樹」の主人公の決め台詞である。銀行員である半沢が理不尽な上司、社会に立ち向かう姿がサラリーマンを中心に共感を集め、高視聴率へとつながった。視聴者の多くは、上司の理不尽な命令に歯向かえない自身の姿を半沢直樹に投影することで、日頃のうっぷんを晴らしていたようだ。
The drama reportedly divided job-hunting students into two groups. One was those who yearned for Hanzawa and took a deeper interest in seeking a career as a bank clerk. The other was those who distanced themselves from the banking business, scared by the harsh reality of the industry as depicted by the drama. Incidentally, Jun Ikeido who authored the dramatized novel has advised his readers not to behave like Hanzawa.
また、学生の中には半沢直樹にあこがれ銀行を目指す者と、逆にドラマが描く銀行業界の現状を見て、銀行を敬遠する者に二分されたともいわれる。ちなみに、ドラマのもとになった小説の原作者、池井戸潤氏は「半沢の真似はしないほうがいいですよ」と語っている。
The serial drama focuses on the bank employee who works hard day and night. But his work style is not necessarily limited to the banking business in Japan. It reminded viewers of “karoshi” (death from overwork), the word coined to showcase the poor work environment in the country. Karoshi is medically defined as “death from heart and brain disease caused by extreme fatigue and accumulated stress resulting from long, irregular work and frequent business trips”. It is now one of Japanese words widely used in the world. It has been put on Oxford Dictionary of English.
ところで、ドラマは日夜分かたず仕事に励む銀行員の姿を描いているが、銀行に限らず日本の労働環境の悪さを端的に物語る「過労死」を連想させる。「長時間労働、不規則な勤務、頻繁な出張など、業務に起因する極度の過労やストレスの蓄積などにより、脳疾患や心臓疾患を起こし死亡すること」定義される「過労死」は、今では世界で通用する言葉の１つとなり、オックスフォード英語辞典に「Ｋａｒｏｓｈｉ」と載るまでになった。
Working long hours that can lead to karoshi is more serious in Japan than in other industrialized countries. While Japan is not much different from the UK, Germany and France in the number of annual paid holidays, it significantly lags behind in the number of hours worked per person. These indicate that Japanese workers are obliged to do more overtime. Prolonged working hours have long been associated with karoshi. However, no effective solution has so far been found. Does this perhaps mean that Japan has no person like Hanzawa in the political and business circles who has the ability to solve difficult problems in a single sweep?
日本の場合、過労死をもたらす長時間労働は他の先進国に比べより深刻だ。イギリス、ドイツ、フランスと比較すると、年間休日数はさほど変わらないが、労働者１人当たりの平均労働時間の長さは日本が大きく上回っており、残業が多いことが読み取れる。過労死との関連で長い労働時間が問題視されて久しいが、なかなか解決できないでいる。政界や経済界に半沢直樹のように、一刀両断で問題を解決できる人物がいないということなのか。
Written By : Masashi Takinose