Workers employed in decommissioning the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant are to sue operator Tokyo Electric Power and some subcontractors, demanding millions of yen in unpaid danger money, their lawyer said on Tuesday.
The four men, of whom two are still working at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, will demand the companies pay a total of 65 million yen ($620,000), mostly in hazard allowances.
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It is the first time that workers still employed at the plant have launched legal action against TEPCO over remuneration and working conditions, despite widespread reports of exploitation and abuses.
“My health may be harmed some day… I believe there are many people who can’t speak out about this kind of (underpaying) problem,” one of the workers told public broadcaster NHK.
“I may get fired or may be given no further work. But I hope people will take this as an opportunity to speak up and get paid,” he said.
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Of the 6,000 people working at the plant every day over the last two months, only a handful were directly employed by TEPCO.
Allegations continue to swirl that organised crime has had a hand in staffing subcontractors at the bottom of the food chain.
The sometimes murky arrangements mean that despite pledges by TEPCO of extra cash for employees, it is often difficult to tell if the money filters through to the people at the sharp end, or is skimmed off at one of the many intermediary levels.
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