日本美白化粧品引起皮膚白斑

Recently the Yomiuri News on-line reported the following:

「白斑は病気」カネボウ、遅きに過ぎた対応

　カネボウ化粧品は１１日、美白化粧品で肌がまだらに白くなる白斑被害が起きたとみられる問題で、同社の対応の遅れに関する外部弁護士の調査報告書を公表した。

　報告書は、苦情相談の担当者らが「白斑は病気で化粧品とは関係ない」と思いこんで苦情を真剣に取り上げなかったことが最大の原因と指摘した。この責任を取り、カネボウは同日、夏坂真澄社長ら経営幹部１０人が役員報酬を最大５割返上すると発表した。

　報告書は、カネボウの一連の対応について「意図的隠蔽があったとまで評価できないが、都合の悪いことは無視しようという態度が表れていると評価されてもやむを得ない」と厳しく批判。報告書をまとめた中込秀樹弁護士は同日、都内で記者会見し、「固定観念と事なかれ主義で（問題が）放置されてきた」と述べた。

　カネボウによると、２０１１年１０月に最初の被害情報が寄せられ、その後も情報が相次いでいたが、苦情相談や販売現場の担当者は「病気」「判定不能」などと判断。１３年５月に医師から「化粧品が原因の可能性がある」と指摘され、夏坂社長に報告されるまで、化粧品自体に問題はないと認識していた。

　今回の報告書は、会社の説明を大筋で認めた上で、１２年９月にも大阪府の医師から「化粧品が原因の可能性がある」との診断が出ていたことなどから、「この時点において、対策を取るべき義務が発生していた」と、対応の遅れを批判した。

　同社が１３年５月に問題を把握してから、７月４日の商品回収発表まで約２か月かかった点も、「遅きに過ぎた」とした。

（2013年9月11日20時50分 読売新聞）

(試譯文)

   On the 11th the Kanebo Cosmetics, about the problems regarding skin-whitening cosmetics causing mottled skin that become white spots, released the investigation report done by an outside counsel about its delay in responding.

  The report indicated that the greatest cause was the people in charge of complaint consultations were convinced that “the skin white spot is a sickness and is not related to cosmetics", and did not take up the complaint earnestly. Taking up this responsibility, Kanebo announced on the same day that ten management employees, including President Natsusaka Masumi, the director remuneration would be cut back by up to the maximum of 50 percent.

  The report, regarding Kanebo’s series of response, severely criticized that "although it cannot evaluate whether there is intentional concealment, it is unavoidable to assess that it appears that there was an attitude of trying to ignore the inconvenience". Lawyer Hideki Nakagome who compiled the report gave an interview in the metropolitan area to say on the same day that "(a problem) has been neglected by a fixed thinking and by the nothing-is-wrong policy".

  According to Kanebo, the first damage information was received in October 2011, and after that, also there had been a lot of information, but the people in charge of complaint consultations and the salesperson on the spot judged that it was "illness", "a judgment is impossible", etc. It was indicated by the doctor in May, 2013 that "Cosmetics might be the cause" and then it was reported to President Natsusaka Masumi, until then the cosmetics themselves were recognized as satisfactory.

  The present report, while accepting explanation of the company on the whole, based on the diagnosis that "cosmetics may be the cause" had come out from the doctor of Osaka in September, 2012 etc., it criticized the delay in responding, pointing out that "at this time the duty in which measures should have been taken had occurred".

  About the point that after the company had grasped the problem on May 13th, it took about two months to announce the goods recall on July 4, the report said that "the delay was too much".

It seems that Kanebo, as a big company, should have established a satisfactory complaints handling system. From the crisis management point of view, it should have dealt with complains more seriously from the outset.