On October 31, RENGO held its Central Demand Realization Pep Rally in Tokyo. At the Hibiya Amphitheater in Tokyo where the rally was held approximately 4,500 attendees gathered from local RENGO and affiliate organizations all over the country. Attendees pledged to tackle the three top-priority issues with every bit of strength to; (1) compile a supplementary budget to improve jobs and economy, (2) legislate part-time/temporary contract labor law, (3) abolish unpaid overtime work. Also present to appeal their hardships were high school students having difficulties finding jobs and members from the union (RENGO Tokyo Union affiliate) fighting against their former company after having been terminated as part of corporate restructuring. After the rally, there was also a petition street demonstration at the Diet building.

 

Photo: President Sasamori called for "RENGO to begin steps toward improving society."

President Sasamori opened the rally by giving a speech on behalf of the organizers. He told attendees that the common opinion raised over and over by local employers and workers during his nine-month, nationwide Action Route 47 was that "Japan will collapse under the current Cabinet." He said, "RENGO must take steps to improve society as a National Center. I want this rally to be the start." Sasamori touched on the government's comprehensive anti-deflation policy released the day before the rally on October 30. Showing concern over a situation that may generate 650,000 to 1.5 million newly unemployed along with an acceleration of the clean-up of bad loans, he criticized the policy stating that neither "its mechanism nor financial resources are clear. We cannot draw any clear picture of what they are going to do."

After Sasamori's speech and General Secretary Kusano struggle proposal, high school students struggling to find jobs and workers who lost jobs due to corporate restructuring delivered urgent appeals. The students said, "only 18 out of 45 students looking for work received informal job offers. There are no vacancies in the fields we want to go into and we do not want to be 'part-timers' with our dreams shattered." They shared their thoughts to the audience saying "we want (government to make) a society where there is hope."
Nine workers from Mitsubishi Securities Field Service Workers Union (RENGO Tokyo affiliate union) who were notified termination of contract abruptly after corporate consolidation participated to the rally. They showed their determination by saying "we will steadfastly dispute the company," citing irrationality and injustice when the company suddenly dissolved their contract which had been automatically renewed for the past forty years.
Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Nakano, Social Democratic Party Policy Board Chairperson Ohwaki, Liberal Party Diet Affairs Committee Chairperson Yamaoka, and Party for Independents Representative Tanabu also attended the rally.