10/5/2011 Yakuza possibly involved in TEPCO sub-contracting of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear workers

Both ENENEWS and EX-SKF Blog had recent articles pertaining to the "pointy guy" or "camera guy" (Takeuchi) who has famously stood in front of the TEPCO webcam at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in radiation protective gear and pointed his finger directly at the camera.


So why was he pointing?  "I would like to request that TEPCO and the government improve in a tangible way how they contract work to subcontractors and how they monitor the employment situation.", says pointy guy as quoted from EX-SKF Blog.  Also according to EX-SKF Blog "pointy guy" believes the Yakuza are gathering sub-contractors for TEPCO for the dangerous Fukushima Daiichi nuclear work:

[...]
As has been much reported, some workers have been forced to work here by the outlaw element [i.e. "yakuza" or the Japanese mafia]. Such workers are disguised as being employed by legitimate contractors but have to accept an unfair or severe employment conditions. Sometimes even the legitimate contractors who post recruitment information at employment Offices don't know who their workers' true contractors are. The excessive multi-layered subcontracting leads to various problems such as lower wages, no insurance, and no contract document, as has been reported.
[...]

The "pointy guy" or "camera guy" (Takeuchi) apparently showed up at a recent TEPCO press conference and said the following according to ENENEWS:

[...] I was working for a sub-contract company at Fukushima in August. [...]
Media is banned to go into the plant site. Is it because media might see and report Yakuza people are working there ?
I actually saw people with Yakuza tatoo [sic] in the backroom. Is it not to let the media report the truth in the plant ?

Matsumoto, spokesman of TEPCO stumbled in his response as per ENENEWS:

Well, um, ah regarding of the Fukushima nuclear plant, eh [...]
The reason why we don’t disclose the actual situation inside is [...]
One of them is, um, because it’s in the caution zone and [...] From our point of view, now, um, [...] we are trying our best, so, ah [...] um, well, there is also the problem of exposure of the reporters. [...]
In that meaning, for now, discussing with the government and um.. [...] we can not disclose the actual situation inside of the plant.

Apparently this is not a new phenomenon in Japan.  There is an old 1995 documentary titled Nuclear Ginza which details how the Yakuza have recruited homeless and poor people from off the streets for high risk nuclear worker jobs in the past.

Nuclear Ginza: Japan's secret at-risk labor force Part 1/2


Nuclear Ginza: Japan's secret at-risk labor force Part 2/2