2017.03.14
Unpaid salaries to doctors exceed ¥900 million
Doctors at two prefectural hospitals have reportedly been getting a short shrift from their employers as the Labor Standards Inspection Office has issued a recommendation for the hospitals to pay unpaid wages for the physicians for the extra duty work they had done
The Labor Office issued its verdict in November, and on Tuesday it was revealed that the total amount of the unpaid salaries for doctors and dentists in six prefectural hospitals in 2016 is expected to exceed ¥900 million. The Labor Office recommends correcting the unpaid amount of salaries for overtime not only for doctors but also other healthcare personnel, including nurses, over the last two years.
According to the Office, “based on the recommendation, the total amount exceeds ¥900 million, although it is almost impossible to know the exact total amount for the moment.”
Hokubu Hospital and Nanbu Medical Center were specifically named for the correction this time, but the Labor Standards Inspection Office found common problems with payroll handling in all prefectural hospitals, and first asked six of the hospitals to report the number of duty doctors and the amount of unpaid salaries from the fiscal 2016.
As a result, it was found that the 298 doctors in Chubu hospital were owed ¥250 million in unpaid wages, while Nanbu Medical Center had ¥230 million, and Miyako Hospital ¥180 million of unpaid wages. Seiwa Hospital owed the least with ¥28 million.
A group negotiation between the hospitals and the Okinawa Municipal Doctors Labor Union is scheduled for the near future, and it is expected that the total amount of unpaid salaries would climb higher if the salary increase is recommended by the National Personnel Agency in 2016 is implemented.