Photo: Assistant General Secretary Murakami (right) hands a demand statement to Minister's Secretariat Councilor Koike (left), at the Ministry of Justice.

Prior to the 3.1 Central Pep Rally on March 1st, RENGO conducted a demand activity to central government ministries and agencies and employers' associations. This activity called on them to seek fortification of job measures, secure labor credits, ensure rules of dismissal and legislate them, and expand rights for part time workers. The demand delegation, including representatives from regional areas, visited and vented their demand to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, the Ministry of Justice, the Supreme Court, the Japan Federation of Employers' Associations (NIKKEIREN), National Federation of Small Business Associations, and the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Representatives from ZENSEN (the Japanese Federation of Textile, Garment, Chemical, Mercantile, Food and Allied Industries Workers' Unions) and JAM (Japanese Association of Metal, Machinery and Manufacturing Workers) who are very well aware of the actual situation of bankruptcy also joined the demand activity at the Ministry of Justice. They appealed for the necessity of raising the priority of labor credits for reviewing the bankruptcy legislation which is currently under study at the Legislative Council of the Ministry of Justice and elsewhere. Responding, the Ministry of Justice answered "(labor unions and the Ministry) share a common understanding that we need to protect labor credits" although they say it is very difficult to put labor credit protection in order especially in the case of bankruptcy.

The demand delegation introduced them to the real voices that RENGO gathered from its second national survey for job seekers (resignees/unemployed) and the national labor hot line at NIKKEIREN. The delegation asked NIKKEIREN's guidance for individual businesses with regard to the four principles of dismissal for the purposes of reorganization. Further, local RENGO representatives from the Kanto Bloc were also present at the demand activity. They reported on the actual situations of micro to mid-sized businesses, which show no end of violations of the Labor Standard Law, and called on NIKKEIREN to strengthen its guidance toward member associations.