Citizens attending the first public hearing Thursday on Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s request to increase electricity rates for households voiced opposition to the plan and urged the utility to cut costs instead.
Masaaki Sakai, one of 10 members of the public given the opportunity to speak, expressed dismay at media reports that Tepco is planning to increase the annual salaries of employees by an average of ¥460,000 in the next fiscal year. He also criticized Tepco's plans to pay a winter bonus this year.
"Tepco is a company that needs public funds (to survive), and the issues of compensating disaster victims and proceeding with decontamination work are far from resolved. How is it possible for the company that caused the (Fukushima No. 1 plant) accident to give its employees higher salaries than average large companies?" Sakai asked attendees of the session at the industry ministry, which included Tepco President Toshio Nishizawa.