“Abuse of trust”
Japan: Authorities cut firefighter’s salary for sideline work as a YouTuber
The man’s YouTube channel earned him the equivalent of 8,760 euros over a period of ten months. An anonymous tip is said to have brought the authorities on the trail of the 33-year-old. (Symbol image)
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A 33-year-old firefighter was cut in Japan because of his sideline job as a YouTuber. With his activities he violates a law that restricts the commercial activities of public service employees, so the reasoning.
The authorities in Japan have cut a firefighter’s salary because he was also making money by playing video games on the Internet platform YouTube. The actions of the 33-year-old had “abused the trust of the residents of Wakayama,” said a representative of the city in western Japan on Wednesday the AFP news agency.
Japan: Restricting commercial activities by public service workers
With his sideline activity, the firefighter had violated a law that restricts the commercial activities of public sector employees. An anonymous tip had put the authorities on the trail of the 33-year-old. However, since the firefighter never appeared face-to-face, a local officer had to meticulously comb through the clips for vocal clues to his identity.
The man’s channel on the video platform has around 15,000 subscribers. Over a period of ten months, he uploaded more than 300 videos, which usually showed him playing multiplayer strategy games and earned him around 1.15 million yen, the equivalent of 8,760 euros, in advertising revenue.
“We don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing that he was a YouTuber,” said city official Hidetaka Amano. However, he has benefited from advertisements “some of which could be of an inappropriate nature”.