A Japanese government employee has been fined approximately $11,000 for smoking more than 4,500 times during the course of his 14-year employment.
The human resource department discovered a secret stash of tobacco owned by the man and two other employees in the organisation.
The 61-year-old director-level employee was deemed to have violated the “duty of devotion” under the Local Public Service Act.
Osaka has stringent smoking regulations that are mandated by law. Since 2008, smoking has been prohibited on government property, including offices and public institutions. 2019 saw the addition of smoking prohibitions at work.
