The first working level meeting of the Government/Labor/Management Employment Promotion Council was held on August 17 at the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW). The establishment of the working-level council was endorsed at the 7th Government/Labor/Management Employment Promotion Council on June 12. Attendees included RENGO Department of Working Conditions Executive Director Matsuura, NIKKEIREN (Japan Federation of Employers' Association) Deputy Director-General Yano, and MHLW Director-General of Policy Planning and Evaluation Sakamoto who exchanged opinions on the status of employment promotion measures as well as current employment policies.

At the beginning of the meeting, MHLW Director-General of Policy Planning and Evaluation Sakamoto stated in his opening speech "employment continues to be in a difficult situation. Furthermore, it is anxious over the influences on employment following structural reform. As a step toward summarizing the policies of the Headquarters for Industrial Structural Reform and Employment Measures, we would like to find an appropriate direction through the exchanging opinions with representatives from labor and management."
Following Sakamoto's speech, representatives from each level of government explained the "Interim Report," "Immediate Safety Net Measures," and other policies of the Headquarters for Industrial Structural Reform and Employment Measures. In response, NIKKEIREN and RENGO voiced their opinions on current employment measures.
Department of Working Conditions Executive Director Matsuura stressed "we should exchange opinions on how to cope with the employment problems from structural reform caused by bad debt disposal as well as what kind of measures we think we need. Our findings should be linked to a study of concrete countermeasures at the Government/Labor/Management Employment Promotion Council." In addition, to explaining the following seven concrete measures, he announced RENGO's position on the current situations of matching results and vocational training at RENGO Hello Work (an in-house employment agency and staffing business).

1. Activities for emergency job creation through the "Emergency Employment Measures Fund."
2. Fully utilize the Revised Employment Measures Law.
3. Extend the employment insurance benefits period.
4. Establish six / twelve-month vocational training (skill development) courses for approximately 450,000 people a year and which meet employer's needs.
5. Support private placement businesses that help find employment for displaced workers.
6. Step up the ability to match vocational training to job placement in order to meet the needs of both employers and job seekers.
7. Study the possibility of "securing labor credits" for bankruptcies, etc. incurred from the disposal of bad debts.

NIKKEIREN (Japan Federation of Employers' Association) Deputy Director-General Yano also raised points of demand. His following four points coincided with RENGO's demands: (1) Realization of temporary short-term job creation by creating a new fund. (2) Steady implementation of the Revised Employment Measures Law and the steps for on-going employment measures. (3) Improvement of the matching [vocational training >> reemployment] function of employers/job seekers through the establishment of a skill development fund. (4) More support for the private sector to create new jobs.

During the following exchange of opinions the three parties recognized several points including "establishing a fund after the Emergency Regional Employment Special Subsidy System to bring about job creation through government, labor, and management activities at the regional level" where labor and management share a common understanding. They also confirmed that "it is indispensable to hear from both labor and management organizations when making local industry/employment measures programs."
MHLW Director-General of Policy Planning and Evaluation Sakamoto ended the first working level meeting by saying, "we would like to consider the opinions presented here and see them reflected in our policies."