11 April, 2013Every year in February, IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Japan Council of Metalworkers' Unions (JCM) participates in the Spring Labor Offensive, where they submit demands to management on wage and working conditions, and engage in collective bargaining.
The JCM received a series of responses in mid-March and reported on the results of measures taken by 55 labor unions of large companies in the automotive, electrical and electronics, machinery, steel, shipbuilding, nonferrous metal, and electrical wire industries, affiliated to the JCM.
All labour unions secured periodic pay raises as part of the wage structure, this involves maintaining the wage system of increasing wages each year for individuals without falling below the previous year’s wage standards for each age group. In order to secure periodic pay raises, it is necessary to raise wages by about 2 per cent per person.
Regarding bonuses and minimum wage, the JCM achieved a result of 4.77 months worth of bonus, an increase of 0.17 months over the previous year’s standard of 4.60 months. For intra-company minimum wages, 11 labor unions secured raises of 500 yen.
In relation to the government’s move to reform labour regulations the JCM declared,
The government’s advisory body is examining changes to labour conditions that would disadvantage workers. The reforms would enable employers to retrench workers more easily. We the JCM are firmly opposed to these kinds of reforms. What the government should be doing now is curbing growth in the number of non-regular workers, who are subject to unstable employment and low income levels, improving the environment to achieve equal and balanced treatment with regular workers, and raising overall wages standards including for non-regular workers by raising the minimum wage.