In what is at least the second case of Cambodian workers in Japan requesting to be repatriated, five Cambodian men decided to end their employment with Japanese company Kobe Human Services after eight months and returned to the Kingdom last Friday.

According to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the five men, who had been sent to different provinces in Japan to build wooden houses, sought the assistance of the Cambodian Embassy to speak to their employers and send them home, citing unspecified “unbearable working conditions” as the reason for the premature termination of their contract.

“They thought their job was difficult,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Chum Sounry said, adding that the workers were “not forced to work overtime” because the “Japanese company respects the law”.

The company could not be reached for comment. The number of Cambodian migrant workers in Japan is estimated to be about 2,000.