FUKUSHIMA WORKERS DESERVE "COMBAT" PAY

Workers at Fukushima, who are underpaid and poorly trained, are starting to remove bent and twisted spent fuel rods from a pool 100 feet on top of damaged building 4, with manually operated cranes.

As they begin this unprecedented and dangerous operation, these badly treated people literally hold the fate of the world in their hands. One mistake could ignite the 1500 radioactive rods, leading to an unquenchable fire, and explosions that could spread as much radioactivity as 89 Chernobyls. 'Mistakes are often linked to morale,' warns Japan's nuclear regulator. Decent pay would improve morale and and increase the safety and efficacy of this difficult operation.

Meanwhile, workers trying to stabilize the devastated Fukushima nuclear power plant are struggling to keep up with the cleanup amid ongoing crises, health problems, poor wages and falling morale, reports The Guardian on Wednesday October 23, 2013. Although the government gives TEPCO a subsidy for workers , the subcontractors rake off at every level, and the workers end up with little. They are enticed to the job, often by the Yakuzi- the Japanese mafia- with false promises, and intimidated into staying

These people are battling typhoons, and trying to keep the melted down reactors cool, and the wrecked buildings stable. They have been unable to stop radioactive water from polluting the Pacific at the rate of at least 400 tons/day.

One worker at the Fukushima nuclear power plant tells CNN he is not treated well. He believes that if he complains, he will be fired. “Excessive cost-cutting is making workers suffer in terms of payments and health.” Talking to journalists is risky, and the man’s nervous employers could use it as a pretext to fire him. “It’s the same thing for workplace accidents – there’s a collective solidarity,” he says. “If it isn’t too serious, we hide them to avoid problems with the social insurance.” “The quality of work is mediocre because the management asks us to work fast, but the guys aren’t experienced enough,” explains the supervisor of a radioactivity inspection company, in charge of about 50 workers.
As they begin this unprecedented and dangerous operation, these underpaid people literally hold the fate of the world in their hands. One mistake could ignite the 1500 radioactive rods, leading to an unquenchable fire, and explosions that could spread as much radioactivity as 89 Chernobyls. 'Mistakes are often linked to morale,' warns Japan's nuclear regulator. Decent pay would improve morale and and increase the safety and efficacy of this difficult operation.