Stop cutting unemployment benefits: JCP

A bill to cut unemployment benefits passed through the House of Representatives Plenary Session on April 15 by a majority of the three ruling parties.

The Japanese Communist, Democratic, Social Democratic, and the Liberal parties voted against.

The bill would lower the rate of the minimum unemployment benefit to 50 percent from the present 60 percent of the wage paid immediately before the loss of jobs for all applicants who earned more than 126,300 yen (1,052 dollars).

In the Lower House Health, Labor, and Welfare Committee meeting prior to the plenary session, Ozawa Kazuaki argued how wrong it is to cut the unemployment benefit, showing a comparison between Japan and other OECD countries.

Ozawa said that in Japan an employed person's total income over the five years after that person's job loss is only 12 percent of his/her former income, which is lower than Germany's 30 percent, France's 37 percent, Britain's 17 percent and USA's 14 percent.

Ozawa said that the unemployment benefit is at a low level in Japan because the benefit period is short and no more benefits are available after the term expires. He demanded that the assistance program for low-income earners be extended flexibly to those who have difficulty finding jobs. (end)