WORKING

OF AND
RELATING TO
LABOR


Two Big Unions
Building solidarity in Japan one worker at a time

by Doug Collins
The Free Press


If you work in a nonunion job, the hope of organizing your workplace may seem like a distant dream. But if you live in Japan you might just start organizing by your little ol' self by joining one of the two large "general unions" in that country.

General unions in Japan represent any employee in any job, even if their workplace is not organized. And if more and more people in the same workplace join the same general union, their bargaining power gets better and better. The operating idea of the general unions is thus somewhat similar to the "One Big Union" philosophy of the IWW in America.

The two general unions in Japan, the National Union of General Workers, and the Kansai General Union, help workers negotiate with bosses and bring cases to labor tribunals or the court system.

These unions will represent foreign workers and have staff who speak English. Geoff Morrison, a Canadian English language teacher in Japan, writes in the trade publication TESOL Matters that many foreign English teachers encounter contract and other labor problems while employed there. For example, sometimes US or Canadian teachers are sent a rosy work contract to attract them to a school in Japan, but when they arrive in Japan they are asked to sign a much less agreeable contract. Morrison advises them to "join the union as soon as you can and become familiar with your rights."

Labor law in Japan is much different from that in the US. For example, if you work repeated year-long contracts in the same workplace, you may become a permanent employee under Japanese law. Class-action lawsuits do not exist in Japan; workers there must always sue individually.

Although Japan is not a thoroughly unionized country like Sweden, its unionization rate is higher than that of the US, and socialist parties have attracted large percentages of votes for decades. Although there are few high-profile strikes in the country, other types of actions are more common, such as symbolic "mini-strike" work stoppages of perhaps only a few minutes.





Working Around

MEXICO
The first certification of an independent labor union in Mexico's border region recently occurred at the Han Young tractor parts factory near Tijuana. About 90 percent of the workers signed cards affiliating with an independent metal workers union, rather than with the government-sponsored CROC union, the leaders of which are not elected by the workers. Certification of the independent union was initially denied by the Tijuana labor board on a technicality, and a second election was ordered after hunger strikes and unrest caused the federal government to step in. Representatives of the CROC union reportedly consulted with management on who to hire and fire, and packed labor board meetings with phoney workers. Current wages at the factory average 50 cents per hour. (Multinational Monitor)


SANDY NELSON IN INTERNATIONAL COURT
Sandy Nelson last year lost her case in state court against the Tacoma News-Tribune (TNT) to secure her right to speak and organize freely off the job. Nelson was removed from her reporting postion at the TNT in 1991 and placed in a copy-editing position after management at TNT decided she was too political in her activities outside work. (Nelson is active in gay/lesbian and socialist political issues.) Now with the assistance of an international human rights group, Nelson is taking her case to international court, specifically to the Organization of American States Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The US is obliged to live up to certain human rights standards as a member of this organization. (Freedom Socialist)


WORKER DEATHS UNDERREPORTED
In Oregon last year, about 100 workers were killed on the job last year, but official state statistics only show 44, a record low. The state's official numbers are only based on claims in Oregon's workers compensation system, and do not include workers who are not covered by the state's disability plans. This excludes deaths among dock workers, fire fighters, police, federal workers, out-of-state workers who die in Oregon accidents, and self-employed workers. (NW Labor Press)


BAD JUICES
Some juice companies, including Minute Maid, blend Florida orange juice with juice from Brazil. The juice concentrate from Brazil is largely produced with child labor. Minute Maid is owned by the Coca-Cola. In Oakland, California, Quaker Oats has shifted production of its Gatorade drink from a union facility to an Arizona plant staffed by temporary workers. (America@work)


LIVING WAGE IN SPOKANE
The Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane is asking the city council to pass a resolution encouraging area businesses to pay employees a living minimum wage of $8.25 per hour by next January. The resolution would be non-binding. (The Inlander)


BUS FATALITIES
The automated fare boxes in Metro buses, not the drivers, are responsible for one fatality and numerous injuries. Seattle and Redmond police have chosen not to charge bus drivers due to their determination that the fare boxes cause an unnecessary blind spot, resulting in the striking of pedestrians.(587 News Review)




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Contents this page were published in the May/June, 1998 edition of the Washington Free Press.
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