Corporate greed is responsible for the worsening economy -- Akahata editorial, December 19 (excerpts)

The Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) report's call for accelerated base-wage cuts represents a selfish corporate argument that workers should endure present hardships for the sake of corporate profits.

In the prolonged economic recession, even with falling sales, large corporations were able to substantially increase their profits in this year's third quarter thanks to "corporate restructuring." Large corporations are even expecting a V-shaped rapid recovery in March 2003.

The competitiveness of Japan's large corporations is known worldwide. A 2001 survey by a business circle-based think-tank shows that the Japanese manufacturing industry ranks first in the world in labor productivity in real terms. Japan's overall competitiveness is the second in the world.

By contrast, Japanese workers' wage levels as expressed in purchasing power parity is only 69 percent of levels in the United States and 56 percent of Germany.

Large corporations have rapidly increased their profits. They now hold huge amounts of internal reserves amounting to 145 trillion yen (1.2 trillion dollars). If their only concern is to continue to cut labor costs, that will mean less personal incomes and lowered personal consumption.

The report's statement that bargaining must shift its goal from wages to job security is a deception. It is the business circles and large corporations that reduced the regular workforce by 1.19 million in the last four years as a result of massive corporate restructuring.

If many more workers become low-wage contingent workers, that will not help the economy; many workers will be unable to support their families.

Capital's profit-first principle which is ruining the Japanese economy and society can no longer be tolerated. (end)