Change Japan to a country where workers can work with pride
- Zenroren holds its 23rd Convention

The National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) held its 23rd biennial Convention from July 23-25 in Tokyo.

The Convention unanimously adopted a new action plan for the next two years and the revised Zenroren Action Program. It also decided to establish the fund for promoting organizational buildup.

The Convention elected Daikoku Sakuji as the new Zenroren president and approved the proposal for establishing the Contingent Workers Action Center.

About 80 delegates spoke or submitted written statements during the three days of discussion, in which participants were more convinced that their movements helped heighten public awareness. The positive trend of public opinion reflected in the recent political developments.

Delegates shared what they experienced and learned during the last two years throughout the country, in which a broad national solidarity has been built.

On the first day of the Convention, Zenroren President Ban’nai Mitsuo gave the opening statement on behalf of the Executive Committee. The Convention heard greetings by eight guests.

In the closing session on July 25, Secretary General Odagawa Yoshikazu made comments on the discussion and answered questions raised by delegates during the discussion.

The Executive Committee proposed the two-year Plan of Action, people’s struggle for ending the crisis of living conditions, and the revision of Zenroren Action Program, and the establishment of a fund established to promote organizational build-up based under a mid-term plan for organizing, adopted by the previous Convention.

The two-year Plan of Action focuses on the effort to strengthen the struggle to improve people’s living standards and the realize contingent workers’ demands, calling for (1) the struggle for the minimum standard of living to be secured, including the minimum wage and social welfare, in order to decrease social disparities and poverty, (2) the struggle to establish workplace rules, (3) the movement to establish communities in which people can live permanently by opposing the destruction of public services, which is underway along with the government’s public employee restructuring plan, (4) the struggle to defend the Japanese Constitution in order to stick to defending Japan as the nation that has renounced war, (5) democratic control of the lawlessness of big business, and (6) the struggle to pursue eco-friendly working conditions.