Showing posts with label Ikeda Minoru. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ikeda Minoru. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Anti-nuke World Social Forum discusses Japanese government’s responsibility for nuclear clean-up




World Social Forum held in Tokyo on March 27 featured former nuclear plant workers from France, Ukraine, South Korea and Japan to discuss current issues of radiation exposure. “We have 24 nuclear plants in South Korea,” KIM Doo Cheon of South Korea said. “Casual workforce takes up nearly 40 percent at these plants. They face unstable employment, low wage and lack of work experiences. This is directly related to nuclear safety.” IKEDA Minoru, who worked at heavily radioactive Fukushima Daiichi Plant after the disaster, expressed anger by saying, “Some of my colleagues in the same work team earned between 9,000 yen and 16,000 yen. Even though the nuclear plants are highly radioactive and dangerous, wages are set lower than decontamination work. The problem is with outsourcing by TEPCO at multiple levels. Some 50,000 workers have come and gone, but there is no insurance after retirement. Workers are treated as disposable workforce.” The panelists unanimously agreed that the government should take responsibility of the nuclear clean-up and pursue direct employment of workers.” The same panelists are to further discuss the issues on the following date. (By M)
photo: IKEDA on the right


「原発の収束作業は国が責任をもて」~反核世界社会フォーラムで被曝労働問題

327日「核と被ばくをなくす世界社会フォーラム」は、都内で5つの分科会が開
かれ、活 発な報告・討論が行われた。「被曝労働問題の現状」の分科会では、
フランス・ウクライナ・韓国・日 本の元作業員が実態と問題点を報告した。韓
国のギム・ヅチョンさんは「24基が稼働している韓国。非 正規労働者の割合が4
割近くになっている。かれらは“雇用の不安定・低賃金・労働経験の蓄積ができ
ない”などの問題を抱えている。それは即、原発の安全性にもかかわる関わるこ
と」と強調した。フクイチの三次下請けで「危険職場」にいた池田実さんも、
「同じチームで9000円の人もいれば16000円の人もい る。原発は線量が高いのに
除染作業より賃金が安いなど矛盾だらけ。東電の下請け構造に問題がある。 こ
れまで5万人が働いてきたが、辞めたあとの補償は何もない。使い捨てだ」と憤
る。議論で一致した のは「原発の収束作業は国の責任で行い、直接雇用が原
則」ということ。28日も同じメンバーで「国際 シンポジウム」を行い、議論を
深める予定だ。(M
 *被曝手帳を手にする池田さん(左)とムィコラさん

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Man with backbone 〜 mailman goes to work at Fukushima plant




Many workers are engaged in decontamination and decommission work in Fukushima. Someone’s got to do the job, but we can’t help feeling that the tasks are limitless. What goes through the minds of the workers?
 On Feb. 11, I had a chance to hear IKEDA Minoru (see photo), 62, who went to work at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant after he retired a post office. Ikeda, who was delivering mail in Tokyo on March 11, was so shocked at the enormous tremor that he had never experienced before in his life and the devastation at the Fukushima plant.
 “I had a comfortable life in Tokyo up til then,” Ikeda spoke at the event organized by “The Reality of Daunting Task at Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant.” “I wanted to see with my own eyes what is really going on in Fukushima.”
 As he retired in 2013, he chose not to seek re-hire after retirement but to go to Fukushima to do something related to the nuclear plant. Although it was difficult for people over 60 to land a job, he was able to find one at the second-tier subcontractor for decontamination work. (By HORIKIRI Satomi)

 除 染や福島第一原発の収束に携わる幾多の労働者たち。誰かがやらなければならない作業でありながら、果てしないという印象がぬぐえない。どんな思いでその作 業をしているのか。211日、さいたま市で「福島原発作業の真実」という講演会が行われた。主催は「原発問題を考える埼玉の会」。郵便局を退職したあ と、除染そして福島第一原発構内の作業員として働いた、池田実さん(62歳・写真)の話をきいた。池田さんは3・11のその時、東京都内で郵便配達をして いた。はじめて経験する大きな揺れと、その後に起こった福島原発の事故に、ものすごいショックをうける。「今まで東京でぬくぬくと生きてきた。福島で何が 起こっているかみてみたい」と2013年の定年を機に、再雇用の道を選ばずに福島へ。60歳を過ぎての採用は難しかったが、除染作業の二次下請け会社に就 職することができた。(堀切さとみ) 続き