June 29, 2016
The National Federation of Construction Workers’ Unions (Zenkensoren) on June 28 held a rally in Tokyo to achieve higher wages, better unit prices, and the improvement in government support for a public health insurance for construction workers. Around 3,600 construction laborers from across the country participated in this action.
Zenkensoren President Miura Kazuo in his speech said that an increase in wages is essential to encourage young people to keep working in the industry. He called on the participants to urge the government to provide enough financial support to the construction workers’ health insurance system which is a lifeline for workers.
Zenkensoren Secretary General Katsuno Keiji gave the keynote address and mentioned the House of Councilors election scheduled for early July. Saying that Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s attempt to revise the Constitution is a major issue in the election campaign, Katsuno stressed that the election results will have an influence upon whether Japanese people will call for maintaining the 70-year-old Constitution and upholding the principles of democracy, pacifism, and constitutionalism.
Kimura Tadashi spoke on behalf of the construction workers’ union in Kumamoto Prefecture which was hit hard by powerful earthquakes in April. He said that one in six union members suffered damages from the natural disaster but they somehow managed to keep going thanks to support from peers in other prefectures. Kimura went on to say that now many member workers are building temporary housing units for disaster victims.
Japanese Communist Party Vice Chair Tamura Tomoko and representatives of other political parties took part in the rally.
Past related articles:
> More local gov’ts work to ensure decent wages in public contracts [June 26, 2014]
> Construction sector labor shortage should be solved through drastic improvement of working environment [May 25, 2014]
Zenkensoren President Miura Kazuo in his speech said that an increase in wages is essential to encourage young people to keep working in the industry. He called on the participants to urge the government to provide enough financial support to the construction workers’ health insurance system which is a lifeline for workers.
Zenkensoren Secretary General Katsuno Keiji gave the keynote address and mentioned the House of Councilors election scheduled for early July. Saying that Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s attempt to revise the Constitution is a major issue in the election campaign, Katsuno stressed that the election results will have an influence upon whether Japanese people will call for maintaining the 70-year-old Constitution and upholding the principles of democracy, pacifism, and constitutionalism.
Kimura Tadashi spoke on behalf of the construction workers’ union in Kumamoto Prefecture which was hit hard by powerful earthquakes in April. He said that one in six union members suffered damages from the natural disaster but they somehow managed to keep going thanks to support from peers in other prefectures. Kimura went on to say that now many member workers are building temporary housing units for disaster victims.
Japanese Communist Party Vice Chair Tamura Tomoko and representatives of other political parties took part in the rally.
Past related articles:
> More local gov’ts work to ensure decent wages in public contracts [June 26, 2014]
> Construction sector labor shortage should be solved through drastic improvement of working environment [May 25, 2014]
