During the current annual Labor Offensive were reached wage hike agreements between the labor and the management as an average of 6,452 yen as of March 25. The figure includes a year-base salary increase and a regular hike, which hits 3.13%, compared with the last year’s 5,515 yen, with a rate by 1.81% from the previous one. These wages, however, do not mean an upgrading to meet needs of livelihood of workers.
Figure is lower than those of pre-pandemic years
Prime Minister Kishida Fumio told publicly before the labor campaign that he expected an increase of salaries which would surpass by 3% which is good enough for his new type of capitalism. And the administration announced a tax measure for wage hikes to ratify the premier’s remarks.
On the other hand, however, the Keidanren, or the Japan Business Federation, insists that a basic rule on wage hikes should rely on business performance of respective entities, rejecting the government’s appeal of an across-the-board growth. The employers’ organization explicitly told that a social safety belt depends on a principle of labor-management cooperation set up by each enterprise.
Meanwhile, the Rengo, the Japan Trade Union Confederation, offered a universal 4% wage hike, a total of 2% for an every-year increase, which has been maintained for seven consecutive years, and another 2% of regular raise. The request itself is lower than the figures of the pre-pandemic years, which implies the national center of workers of a nation is not enthusiastic to support workers by breaking through the wage scheme, which looks extraordinary in the rest of the world.
Workers’ wages have been declining in Japan since 1997 in real terms, while other industrially-advanced countries have recorded growths by 1.2-1.4 times higher for these years.
The Rengo boasts of ‘good results’
March 16 was the day when many of big business entities intensively provided the replies: a phrase ‘perfect responses to demands of labor unions’ was headlined in the media. In fact, companies in the industries of automobiles, electric appliances and metalworking gave satisfactory answers to meet requests of workers’ organizations. The Toyota Group’s management was so generous to move up the date of decision.
Its political implication of the government-business circle’s attitudes was explained earlier in the same column of this newspaper. A more important point lies in whether the trend could reach the smaller-intermediate-sized companies. The result as of today in April, which is 3.25%, beats the level of last year.
The Rengo is proud of the results, saying the drift which predecessor-trade unions have brought in should be kept to succeed to other smaller bodies through tenacious negotiation efforts. When looking, however, over the whole situation, only partially, a few sectors can survive by way of the tax arrangement step to trigger wage surges launched by the Kishida government as an advertising balloon to cope with the July election for the House of Councilors.
Shameful concessions on the labor side
The traditional employment scheme of Japan has been collapsed and workers of the country have been split to two categories, regular and irregular workers. Differences and gaps spread. The irregular group occupies 40% of the total workforce, but trade unions of regular staffs cannot afford to help improving employment conditions and increasing wages for irregular workers. Big unions flatter the ruling political parties, while the government demands employers to raise salaries, which is odd.
In the New Year’s celebration event hosted by the Rengo the incumbent premier attended, after an absence of nine years, to deliver a speech, but the joining leaders of opposition parties were not given an opportunity to speak, not even being offered to appear on the podium.
Chairman of the Rengo, Ms Yoshino Tomoko, met in March Vice-President of the Liberal Democratic Party, Mr. Aso Taro, having a dinner. Chairman disgracefully flatters the government and the ruling parties. The Rengo is, unfortunately, not interested in considering over the fates of workers and people living at the bottom of society.
コロナ前を下回る
岸田文雄首相は、今春闘について「新しい資本主義にふさわしい３％を超える賃上げ期待」を表明し、これを後押しする賃上げ税制を打ち上げた。
だが、経団連は「個別企業業績に適した賃金決定が大原則」とし、あくまで一律での数値目標を拒否、個別企業での労使協働こそが「社会の安定帯」と立ち位置を鮮明にした。
一方、連合は今春闘の統一要求額を７年連続のベア２％、定昇２％、合わせて４％程度とした。要求水準そのものがコロナ禍以前を下回り、世界でも異様な賃金構造を打破する意欲が感じられないものだった。
日本は１９９７年以降、実質賃金のマイナスが続き、他の先進国のそれは同じ期間に１・２倍から１・４倍に増えた。
連合は｢成果｣と
３月16日の大手集中回答日は「満額回答」の文字が躍った。自動車や電機、金属など満額回答、トヨタグループは回答日を前倒しするサービスぶりだった。
その政治的メッセージは本紙前号の本欄で指摘したが、今後の焦点は、中小へ波及ができるか、ということだった。現時点では、昨年を上回る結果（ ３・25％）になっている。
連合は、「先行組合が作り出した『賃上げの流れ』を中小がしっかり引継ぎ粘り強い交渉の成果」と自賛するが、岸田政権が参院選対策として打ち上げた「賃上げ促進税制」によって、コロナ禍で据え置かれていた一部が回復しただけだ。
目に余るすり寄り
日本的雇用形態が崩され、労働者は正規・非正規に二分され、格差は固定化されている。非正規は今や全労働者の４割に達するが、正規社員を中心とした労働組合は自らの手で賃金や雇用条件を改善できず、政権与党にすり寄り、政府が経営者に賃上げを要請するという異様な光景が現出している。
連合の新年交歓会に現職の首相が９年ぶりに出席して挨拶した。ところが、野党の党首は挨拶どころか壇上にも上げてもらえなかった。
連合の芳野友子会長は３月に自民党の麻生太郎副総裁と会食している。芳野会長の政府・与党へのすり寄りは目に余るものがある。残念ながら、今の連合には底辺の労働者・庶民への目配りはないと言わざるを得ない。
英訳版↓
No. 1254 Interim Report on Spring Labor Offensive
During the current annual Labor Offensive were reached wage hike agreements between the labor and the management as an average of 6,452 yen as of March 25. The figure includes a year-base salary increase and a regular hike, which hits 3.13%, compared with the last year’s 5,515 yen, with a rate by 1.81% from the previous one. These wages, however, do not mean an upgrading to meet needs of livelihood of workers.
Figure is lower than those of pre-pandemic years
Prime Minister Kishida Fumio told publicly before the labor campaign that he expected an increase of salaries which would surpass by 3% which is good enough for his new type of capitalism. And the administration announced a tax measure for wage hikes to ratify the premier’s remarks.
On the other hand, however, the Keidanren, or the Japan Business Federation, insists that a basic rule on wage hikes should rely on business performance of respective entities, rejecting the government’s appeal of an across-the-board growth. The employers’ organization explicitly told that a social safety belt depends on a principle of labor-management cooperation set up by each enterprise.
Meanwhile, the Rengo, the Japan Trade Union Confederation, offered a universal 4% wage hike, a total of 2% for an every-year increase, which has been maintained for seven consecutive years, and another 2% of regular raise. The request itself is lower than the figures of the pre-pandemic years, which implies the national center of workers of a nation is not enthusiastic to support workers by breaking through the wage scheme, which looks extraordinary in the rest of the world.
Workers’ wages have been declining in Japan since 1997 in real terms, while other industrially-advanced countries have recorded growths by 1.2-1.4 times higher for these years.
The Rengo boasts of ‘good results’
March 16 was the day when many of big business entities intensively provided the replies: a phrase ‘perfect responses to demands of labor unions’ was headlined in the media. In fact, companies in the industries of automobiles, electric appliances and metalworking gave satisfactory answers to meet requests of workers’ organizations. The Toyota Group’s management was so generous to move up the date of decision.
Its political implication of the government-business circle’s attitudes was explained earlier in the same column of this newspaper. A more important point lies in whether the trend could reach the smaller-intermediate-sized companies. The result as of today in April, which is 3.25%, beats the level of last year.
The Rengo is proud of the results, saying the drift which predecessor-trade unions have brought in should be kept to succeed to other smaller bodies through tenacious negotiation efforts. When looking, however, over the whole situation, only partially, a few sectors can survive by way of the tax arrangement step to trigger wage surges launched by the Kishida government as an advertising balloon to cope with the July election for the House of Councilors.
Shameful concessions on the labor side
The traditional employment scheme of Japan has been collapsed and workers of the country have been split to two categories, regular and irregular workers. Differences and gaps spread. The irregular group occupies 40% of the total workforce, but trade unions of regular staffs cannot afford to help improving employment conditions and increasing wages for irregular workers. Big unions flatter the ruling political parties, while the government demands employers to raise salaries, which is odd.
In the New Year’s celebration event hosted by the Rengo the incumbent premier attended, after an absence of nine years, to deliver a speech, but the joining leaders of opposition parties were not given an opportunity to speak, not even being offered to appear on the podium.
Chairman of the Rengo, Ms Yoshino Tomoko, met in March Vice-President of the Liberal Democratic Party, Mr. Aso Taro, having a dinner. Chairman disgracefully flatters the government and the ruling parties. The Rengo is, unfortunately, not interested in considering over the fates of workers and people living at the bottom of society.
April 20, 2020