Osaka Prefecture releases draft basic policy for countermeasures after 1 in 4 employees suffers from harassment

On the 15th, Osaka Prefecture announced the results of an employee survey regarding ``customer harassment,'' which includes unreasonable demands and abusive language toward prefectural employees. One in four staff members responded that they had experienced harassment.

According to the prefecture, the survey was conducted online between June 25 and July 9, targeting a total of 10,100 full-time and part-time employees, and received responses from a total of 6,007 people.

Of the respondents, 1,365 employees (23%) answered that they had experienced harassment in fiscal 2025. When these employees were asked about their frequency, 64% said ``several times a year,'' 18% said ``several times a month,'' 4% said ``several times a week,'' and 1% said ``almost every day.''

Regarding the response time per incident, 597 employees, or over 40% of the employees who responded that they had been harassed, said the response time was over an hour. 5% of employees answered "more than 3 hours".

In addition, when employees who reported being harassed were asked about the impact using multiple answers, 80% said they felt stressed or anxious, and 16% said they felt like quitting their job.

Additionally, on the 15th, the prefecture announced the ``Basic Policy for Countermeasures against Customer Harassment (draft)''. The draft policy stipulates that if the other party continues to make unreasonable demands or use abusive language despite sufficient explanations, the response will be terminated after approximately 15 to 30 minutes; If the other party is already in the office, they will be asked to leave if necessary; and filming and recording that will disrupt order or interfere with the smooth performance of official duties within the building will be prohibited.