when people are dismissed. The deceased person's families demand damages when such deaths occur. Life insurance companies started putting one-year exemption clauses in their contracts. They did this so that the person must wait one year to commit suicide in order for the family to receive the money. There is a new movement of Japanese workers, formed as a result of karoshi. Compared to older Japanese people who often work overtime, young Japanese people are preferring part-time work. This is a new style of career choice for the young Japanese people who want to try out different jobs in order to figure out their own potential. These individuals work for "hourly wages rather than regular salaries," and are called "freeters." The number of freeters has increased throughout the years, from 200,000 in the 1980s to about 400,000 in 1997. Freeters undergo a special kind of employment, defined by Atsuko Kanai as those who are currently employed and referred to as "part-time workers or arbeit (temporary workers), who are currently employed but wish to be employed as part time workers, or who are currently not in the labor force and neither doing housework nor attending school but wish to be employed only as part-time workers." Government policies To provide a strategic plan to decrease the rate of karoshi, the National Institute of Health proposed the establishment of a comprehensive industrial health service program to reduce karoshi and other diseases caused by work-related stress in its 2005 annual report. The program requires communal efforts from the following groups: The government, as the policy maker, should promote shorter working hours, make health services readily accessible, encourage voluntary health examination and enhance the effectiveness of medical care. As the group that is more closely involved with the everyday health of employees, labor unions and employers should strive to implement and comply with government policies that focus on reducing work overtime and creating a better work environment. The employees themselves should recognize the need to take rests regularly and take preventive measures as needed. As a formal response to this proposal, the Industry Safety and Health Act was revised in 2006. The Act established various terms that focus on work-related health issues, including mandatory health checks and consultations with professional medical personnel for employees who work long hours and have a higher probability of having work related illnesses. Corporate response Many companies have been making