Dying for A Living

By CHRISTOPHER JOHN FARLEY

THE PROSPECT OF DEATH FROM OVERWORK IS COMMON enough in Japan that they have a word for it -- karoshi. When the term was recently given official international recognition, however, some image-sensitive Japanese officials were upset. The World Labor Report, published by the Geneva-based International Labor Office, cites karoshi as one of the consequences of stress at work. The report also contains a survey that says more than 40% of Japanese fear they may work themselves into an early grave. The Japanese Ministry of Labor questions the report's data and is filing a formal protest with the International Labor Office. Here's hoping ministry officials won't work too hard getting the report corrected.