Toyota apologizes, settles lawsuit over suicide of employee due to overwork, harassment

Toyota Motor Corp has settled a lawsuit seeking 123 million yen in damages that blamed overwork and harassment for the suicide of employees as company president Akio Toyoda has apologized to the family.

The settlement’s monetary details were not disclosed.

The wife said she felt her husband, then 40 at the time of the suicide in 2010, would have understood why they agreed on the settlement. She added that she believes Toyota could change for the better.

Toyota vowed to investigate the case to prevent a recurrence and claims it is now trying to create a more transparent workplace environment where people could speak up, and management that's free of power harassment to allow employees to work without fear.

In September, the Nagoya High Court ruled the death to be work-related, noting he suffered severe stress at work before his suicide. Toyota initially contested the allegations.