46 Percent of New Hires Quit in Hyogo Prefecture Last Year
Record-High Withdrawal Rate Attributed to Governor's Power Harassment Allegations
Saito Motohiko, Governor of Hyogo Prefecture, who resigned amid abuse of power allegations but ran in the election and won
In Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, 150 new public servants were recruited, but 69 of them gave up joining. Hyogo Prefecture is known for its governor who resigned amid workplace bullying allegations (called "power harassment" in Japan) and was later re-elected. Japanese media analyze that the governor's bullying suspicions influenced this outcome.
According to Jiji Press, Hyogo Prefecture announced on the 9th that "Among the 150 newly hired general administrative public servants (university graduate level) for 2024, 69 gave up their employment, resulting in a withdrawal rate of 46.0%." The withdrawal rate for the previous year was 25.5%. Although the recruitment method was partially changed last year, making direct comparison difficult, this is an increase of more than 20 percentage points. Jiji Press reported that workplace bullying (power harassment) allegations related to Governor Saito Motohiko appear to have had an impact. At a regular press conference held the same day, Governor Saito only said, "It is important to promote prefectural administration. We will properly create a working environment where we can work together."
In this recruitment, Hyogo Prefecture newly introduced an aptitude test used in private companies for the written exam. Also, the selection process was advanced compared to previous years. By mid-June last year, 60 people were notified as "final successful candidates," but 35 of them gave up their employment. In the general recruitment, 34 out of 90 successful candidates gave up. Regarding this, a current personnel department official told Jiji Press, "Since the recruitment was advanced, we expected some people might move to other local governments or institutions," but about the specific reasons for the high withdrawal rate, they said, "We do not know for sure."
Saito Motohiko (48), governor of Hyogo Prefecture, is an elite bureaucrat who graduated from the University of Tokyo and was elected governor in 2021. However, in March last year, a bullying controversy erupted triggered by a document from a Hyogo Prefecture director, and after he even attempted suicide, a no-confidence resolution passed in the assembly in September, leading to his resignation. Nevertheless, saying "It is important to ask for (residents') trust," he ran again in the gubernatorial election and was elected in November. Many of the bullying allegations were confirmed as true by a third-party committee established at the prefecture's request. Governor Saito frequently verbally abused staff and often lost his temper over minor issues. He also assigned work or reprimanded employees via chat regardless of weekday nights or weekends.
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