According to the Japan times article “Report on overwork highlights Japan’s work-life balance issues,” on Octorber13, 2023, many workers in Japan struggle with lack of sleep because of the hard work. There are more possibilities to suffer from health issues like daytime sleepiness, difficulty concentrating and digestive and intestinal disorders, not to mention mental disorders such as depression and anxiety if the gap between the amount of sleep people want and the amount they get is bigger. Although over 90% of workers feel they need at least six hours of sleep a night, only about half of nearly 10,000 who were surveyed said they are getting that much sleep. In the research, 35.5% said they are sleeping for between five and six hours per night, followed by 35.2% who said they get between six and seven hours of sleep. While another 15.7% said they get between seven and eight hours, and 3.5% said they get even more than that, 10% said they sleep less than five hours. Considering this fact, health ministry officials are trying more employers to absolutely get enough sleep by setting measures such as minimum hours of rest and recuperation between shifts which is called work interval system. However, there is also a problem that the requirement is not legally binding, and the government does not spell out a specific number of hours for the interval. 

Source: Report on overwork highlights Japan’s work-life balance issues – The Japan Times