March 20, 2020

The National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) on March 19 held a press conference in Tokyo and published an urgent proposal calling for government measures to protect workers and small businesses from the negative economic effects from the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

At the press conference, Zenroren Secretary General Nomura Yukihiro said that the government should make all-out efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. Nomura went on to say that at the same time, the government should work hard to defend workers’ livelihoods and jobs as well as to ensure the survival of small- and medium-sized enterprises.

The Zenroren proposal stresses that the government should draw up a supplementary budget without delay. In addition, it calls on the government to push global businesses to use their internal reserves to support the government’s anti-corona measures and have them fulfill their social responsibilities.

Japan’s major trade union center in its proposal demanded the establishment of a legal framework that guarantees jobs and paid sick leaves for corona-affected employees and the creation of a public system to compensate freelancers for their loss of earnings.

In the Zenroren proposal, other demands regarding the current health crisis included the cancellation of the government plan to slash the number of public hospitals, state support for those who are affected by the government instructions to suspend and cancel large-scale events, and the lowering of the consumption tax rate.

Nomura explained that in this year’s spring wage offensive, Zenroren-affiliated unions have been making efforts to press their employers to offer higher wages and accept other union demands, particularly the demand for protection from the negative affects associated with the corona crisis. Nomura called on Zenroren union members to increase their efforts to attract workers who are worried about the negative impacts of the corona issue on their jobs and daily lives to join unions.

Past related article:
> Zenroren provides labor counseling to workers affected by coronavirus crisis [March 11, 2020]