Local governments across Japan are stepping up efforts to tackle abusive behavior by residents and other individuals, introducing measures such as response manuals and assigning former police officers to government offices.
According to a survey conducted in 2024 by the internal affairs ministry, 35% of responding local government employees had experienced harassment by residents and external parties over the previous three years. This figure far exceeds the 10.8% found in a labor ministry survey on customer harassment faced by private-sector employees, highlighting the urgency of strengthened countermeasures.
With multiple responses allowed, the most commonly reported behavior was continuous and persistent conduct, such as repeatedly asking the same question, cited by 72.3% of respondents. This was followed by intimidating behavior, such as loudly blaming the employee, at 66.4%, and psychological attacks, including threats and slander, at 52%.
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