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December 28, 2007 |
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GOODWILL GROUP: Founder to Step Down as CEO Amid Scandals Goodwill Group Inc. founder Masahiro Origuchi will resign as chief executive officer of the company following a series of scandals involving the group, Bruce Porter reports for the Japan Corporate Network. Mr. Porter relates that aside from stepping down as CEO, Mr. Origuchi will also give up his right to represent the company while staying on as chairman. The move, states Kyodo News, comes as the government is set to order Goodwill's staffing service unit, Goodwill Inc., to suspend operations as punishment for its illegal practices, which included the placement of registered workers to jobs not allowed for temporary staffing services. Kyodo News notes that Goodwill Inc. was punished in June 2005 over illegal dispatches of workers to the construction industry. Also, the company's nursing care service provider, Comsn Inc., faced an administrative punishment earlier this year for its fraudulent applications for nursing care service fee receipts under Japan's public nursing insurance system, relates Kyodo News. Comsn has effectively withdrawn from its nursing care business after selling most of its operations, adds Kyodo. According to the report, criticism of Mr. Origuchi is unlikely to subside as he will remain the company's chairman and according to industry sources interviewed by JCN, Goodwill Group's business plight would become more serious if the staffing service unit is slapped with the government's business suspension order. About Goodwill Group Japan-based The Goodwill Group, Inc. -- http://www.goodwill.com/gwg/english/index.html -- is a involved in five business segments. The Staffing segment offers recruitment services for technicians, senior workers and others. The Human Resources-related segment provides employee-hiring support services to corporate clients, counseling services to workers and outplacement services to retired and retiring workers. The Nursing-care and Medical Support segment is engaged in the provision of home-care services, care services in facilities and dental examination services at home, as well as the sale of nursing-care goods and equipment, among others. The Senior Residence and Restaurant segment operates nursing home under the name THE BARRINGTON HOUSE, and also operates restaurant in both domestic and overseas markets. The Others segment is engaged in the planning, designing and management of pet care facilities, the operation of pet care shops, the operation and management of nurseries, the provision of baby- sitting services and others. The Troubled Company Reporter-Asia Pacific reported on June 14, 2007, that The Goodwill Group is thinking of selling its home nursing-care services division after the Japanese government banned it from renewing its licenses due to its involvement in a fraud scandal. The article conveyed that the firm allegedly obtained some of the licenses for nursing-care service operators certified under a public insurance program through fraudulent applications, including those with an inflated number of employees. |
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