Kobe city worker suspended for harassing maskless subordinate

KOBE -- A 60-year-old municipal government manager here who had told his subordinate to quit and grabbed them by the collar for talking without a mask has been suspended for two days.

The Kobe Municipal Government disciplined the health bureau worker on March 29 for power harassment. According to the city, the employee allegedly reprimanded a subordinate who was talking with a colleague in the office without wearing a mask, saying, "Quit your job," and, "Shall I hit you?" and grabbed them by the collar on Feb. 3, 2021. The accused worker was quoted as explaining, "I couldn't suppress my anger because of (the subordinate's) low social awareness, even though they had to work to prevent the spread of the coronavirus."

He is also alleged to have sent nonurgent work instructions to another subordinate via the Line messaging app early in the morning, late at night and on holidays between June 2019 and October 2022.

The city considered these acts to be equivalent to a one-month suspension, but since the man is retiring at the end of March, the period was set at two days.

(Japanese original by Shinya Yamamoto, Kobe Bureau)