Government is to blame for NTT shifting losses abroad on to workers: JCP

A Japanese Communist Party member of the House Councilors has said NTT Corp., the holding firm of telecommunications companies, is going to force its employees to make up for the losses incurred by its overseas subsidiaries through massive job cuts.

At a House of Councilors committee meeting on November 6, Miyamoto Takeshi revealed that NTT Corporation's restructuring plan involving 110,000 job cuts is to create 23 billion yen to make up for its investment losses. NTT Corp. has invested 2.4 trillion yen overseas.

Dutch KPN Mobile in which NTT has a 15 percent stake has run a loss of 400 billion yen in stock evaluation. A U.S. company, which it bought for 600 billion yen, is now on the brink of bankruptcy.

Miyamoto said the Public Managment Ministry is responsive for not adequately overseeing NTT. The PMM is the biggest NTT shareholder, with 46 percent of the stock.

In reply, Public Management Minister Katayama Toranosuke said that the government is in no position to interfere in the management of a private company.

The JCP representative refuted this by revealing that in May PMM sent a letter to NTT Corporation President Miyazu Jun'ichiro urging him to draw up a restructuring plan.

Miyamoto said the sharp contrast between the 2.4 trillion yen invested overseas and the 23 billion yen cost cutting through restructuring shows how arrogant the 110,000 job cuts plan is.

Miyamoto demanded that the Upper House committee hold an intensive discussion on these overseas investments and summon Miyazu as a witness. (end)