Bodies put into the controlled area Period at the bottom of nuclear power plant labor Period of high growth to the bubble economy

Bodies put into the controlled area Period at the bottom of nuclear power plant labor Period of high growth to the bubble economy

The testimony of a former yakuza who said he was allowed into the controlled area even though he was covered in tattoos reflects the reality of the work site, which is different from the public face of strict safety control at nuclear power plants. From the high-growth period to the bubble era, nuclear power plants expanded as a national project, but there was a chronic shortage of workers at the sites. The dangerous and grueling work was carried out by people on the margins of society, such as ex-convicts, day laborers, and gangsters. Their identities and pasts were given priority over their bodies, which were able to move on the spot today, and their tattoos and backgrounds were tacitly accepted. In many cases, the continuation of work was valued more than safety regulations, such as when a syringe was found and the worker was only temporarily banned from work. In their stories, the workers talk concretely about the nature of the work, the daily allowance, the sensation of
rising radiation exposure readings, and the feeling of fatigue that lingered after the work was done. The nuclear power plant was a symbol of regional development and national policy, but at the same time, it was supported by the accumulation of these nameless bodies. This testimony conveys this reality in a simple but vivid manner.