Assembly calling for rights of temporary and contract workers

The National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) on 21 November 2006 held an assembly to share experiences in the struggle for establishing labor rights of temporary and contract workers with 65 union activists attending. Participants also exchanged their future tasks inspired by lessons and outcomes of their struggles in the past two years since the previous meeting.

In the opening speech on behalf of Zenroren, Secretary General ODAGAYA Yoshikazu called on participants to take a lead for making historic progress in the struggle.

Lawyer SASAYAMA Naohito, in his lecture, stressed the need to establish labor rights for contingent workers citing specific cases of disputes.

Zenroren Vice President IWATA Yukio proposed concrete activities in the years to come, which are as follows: promotion of study using a Zenroren’s leaflets; workplace inspection of actual conditions of temporary and contract workers; elaborating demands for negotiations with the government; start-up of a liaison council in order to coordinate activities during the period of 2007 Spring Struggle; strengthening efforts to organize contingent workers.

Special reports were made by seven union representatives.

A participant from the Tokushima Prefectural Federation of Trade Unions reported the struggles at Koyo Sealing Techno, Ltd. and Nichia Corporation (known for its light emitting diode), in which workers obtained positive results for getting contract workers regular employee status and also getting a new union members.

“With regard to the struggle, we are always asked what should be done to force the company to hire disguised contract workers directly. However, it originated from their pressing demands, including raising an hourly wage of 1,100 yen. Those young workers can hardly get married with the previous low wage. The most important task is organizing drives based on their demands.”

(From Zenroren, December 15, 2006 issue)