On January 14 at the 20th Central Executive Committee Meeting, RENGO endorsed plans to realize its policy and system demands at the 145th ordinary diet session.
RENGO aimed to realize 11 policies and systems at this session, namely stressing these four core policies; economic recovery brought about by a 10 trillion yen tax cut and provision, creation of one million jobs, social security reform, and the establishment of equitable working rules.

"Emphasis on Policy and System Demands at the Current Diet Session "
RENGO aims to realize the following policies and systems at the diet session to break the long recession and restore stability and brightness to peoples' standard of living and employment. It will seek to do this by especially emphasizing the four core policies of economic recovery, job creation, social security reform and the establishment of fair working rules.

(1) Strengthen economic recovery measures by means of both a ¥10 trillion-tax cut and other provisions for working people as well as expanding public works for building infrastructure.

1. Implement income tax cuts and other provisions from January as part of fair tax system reform especially an increase in disposable income for the middle to lower income levels.
2. Public works centering on the creation and stabilization of employment, nursing care and welfare for the aged/low birth, life-related social capital such as housing, and the development and improvement of environmental preservation.

(2) Promote concrete plans for the million-job creation, which will lower the unemployment rate to the 3 percentile while expanding support for the unemployed.

1. Specific plans to create jobs (i.e. creating jobs in nursing related areas, urban preservation, forestry in national parks, housing construction, education, and immediate implementation of the 30-child-per-class-system.)
2. Implement a nationwide extension for the Employment Adjustment Grants System (extend 90 days evenly) and provisions promoting the finding of jobs (150days).
3. Enact the "Manufacturing Basis Technology Promotion Basic Law" and enhance employment promotion for mid to small-size companies.

(3) Reforms for a Safe and Reliable Social Security System

1. Increase government liability on basic pensions to one half in the 1999 Fiscal Year and transfer it to taxation. Maintain pension indexing to disposable income and maintain pensions proportionate to wages. Introduce an aggregate remuneration system and freeze insurance rate hikes.
2. Transfer medical examination expenses to a "lump-sum payment method," introduce a "Japanese version of the reference price system" to resolve marginal profits from prices of drugs, form a "retired health insurance system" instead of the geriatric health system, and establish a patients' bill of rights.
3. Frame and carry out the new "Super Gold Plan," active governmental financial support for the implementation of nursing care insurance. Create fair qualification standards for nursing care needs, as well as appropriate compensation for nursing care.
4. Revise the Social Welfare Services Law centered around new social unification, general users rights as well as their right to choose.

(4) Revise the Dispatch Law for establishing rights for dispatched workers, the Employment Security Law securing the rights of people seeking jobs, the Industrial Safety and Health Law, and the Bankruptcy Act to privilege labor credit. Establish fair working rules including the creation of guidelines for work on holidays and midnight labor.

(5) Revamp Unfair Tax System
Reform taxation on aggregate income including interest on assets. Introduce invoices on consumption tax.

(6) Enforce environmental measures including Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers (PRTR) legislation.

(7) Establish human and social rights
Realize legislation of the "Basic Gender-Equity Act"
Revise Civil Laws including the institution of matrimony, legislate guardianship for adults to protect the rights of seniors and the disabled, and abolish the Communication Monitoring Bill.

(8) Immediate realization of the following
Reform administrative organization with a view to transparency, national participation, the Freedom of Information Act, an absentee ballot system for those at sea, and penalties for graft among congressmen.

(9) Promote decentralization by the transfer of authority and revenue sources, galvanize measures that enforce local finance, and revise the Basic Agriculture Law.

(10) Immediately implement demands to improve wages and working conditions for public servants.

(11) Immediately ratify each article of the ILO Convention
No.105 (Abolition of Forced Labor), No.111 (Anti-Discrimination in Employment and Occupation), No. 138 (Minimum Employment Age), No.144 (Tripartite Consultation on International Labor Standards), No.151 (Labor Relations of Public Service).