| The 51th IMF-JC National Convention |
|
2013-14 Action Program determined President Nishihara, General Secretary Wakamatsu and other new officers elected ■ The JCM 51st National Convention is held
The convention was moderated by Wakaba Takahashi, a delegate from the Confederation of Japan Automobile Workers' Unions (JAW), and Akira Yakusue, JBU. At the Convention, the 2013-14 Action Program was determined, officers were reelected with President Koichiro Nishihara and General Secretary Hideyuki Wakamatsu forming the core of the new 2013-14 organizational structure, and appointments for advisors and political advisors were confirmed. In addition to RENGO General Secretary Hiroyuki Nagumo, the conference was joined by a total of 31 representatives from 22 organizations in 15 countries and regions, including representatives from two IndustriALL affiliates in Japan as well as General Secretary Jyrki Raina and Kan Matsuzaki, IndustriALL’s Director of ICT, Electrical and Electronics, Shipbuilding and Shipbreaking. General Secretary Raina gave a congratulatory address to the gathering on behalf of the guests. Some amendments were made to the rules and regulations, and the English abbreviation of the organization’s name was changed from IMF-JC to JCM. JCMPresident Nishihara's Remarks  First,
President Nishihara addressed the convention on behalf of the JCM. In regards
to international solidarity, he spoke about (1) the significance of the formation
of IndustriALL and the roles and determination of the JCM in its enhancement
and development, and (2) that the JCM would also work to strengthen its
domestic initiatives within Japan, actively participate in discussions on the
Action Program and fulfill its roles and responsibilities in the Asia-Pacific
region. (3) He also stated his goal of a cooperative pace in international
solidarity initiatives among the IndustriALL member organizations in Japan,
centered around the establishment and regular meetings of an IndustriALL
domestic member organization liaison conference. In terms of domestic
activities, he spoke primarily on (1) strong promotion of economic management
and financial policy with a focus on quickly addressing the yen's rise and deflation
in regards to improving the macro environment that supports manufacturing; (2) swift response to the TPP, which is
essential for forming Japan's growth strategy; (3) promotion of the 2013
Offensive through the JC Joint Struggle; (4) the specifics of the report from
the Organizational Administration Examination Committee; and (5) further calls
for participation of women in JCM initiatives. JCM Puts its Full Effort into the Progress of its Valuable Initiatives This Congress is the first for the JCM following the dissolution of the IMF and the founding of the IndustriALL Global Union, a new international industrial union for manufacturing, through the merger of the IMF, ICEM and ITGLWF. When I look back over the nearly half-century of progress the JCM (IMF-JC) has made since becoming an IMF affiliate in 1964, and our history of international solidarity activities, I cannot help but feel a tinge of sadness at the breakup of the IMF in forming IndustriALL. However, the IMF has decided to form an even stronger international industrial organization through strengthening of the international solidarity movement in order to establish and protect the rights of metalworkers and ensure jobs and fair working conditions, and considering the great significance of this step, we at the JCM have renewed our determination that we must work for the strength and progress of IndustriALL. Our organization, through a revision of our rules at this Congress, has changed its English abbreviation from IMF-JC to JCM, and its abbreviated Japanese name to JC Metal. As for solidarity among IndustriALL member organizations in Japan, the JCM along with the ICEM-JAF and UI Zensen have set up an IndustriALL domestic member organization liaison conference, aiming to keep a cooperative pace across all of its international solidarity initiatives based on regular meetings. Regarding the Organizational Administration Examination Committee Proposals that we will make today, we have carefully studied our activities’ current significance and future programs across all initiatives considering response to the hollowing-out of the metalworking and manufacturing industries and the circumstances of the IndustriALL founding, and have revised our organization’s operational and movement details while delineating responsibilities among the JCM and affiliated industry-based unions and working to clarify the action areas which need to be strengthened. Though some parts of the environment surrounding the JCM and metalworkers may prove to be difficult, we will combine the strength and wisdom of the individuals that comprise the JCM and put our full efforts into the progress of our valuable initiatives. Visitor Introductions and Remarks RENGO General Secretary Hiroyuki Nagumo
General Secretary Yoshio Sato, ICEM-JAF
Vice President
Hisanobu Shimada, UI Zensen/The Japanese Federation of Textile, Chemical, Food,
Commercial, Service and General Workers' Unions (IndustriALL Vice President)
 It is a great pleasure and honor for me to present a warm greeting of solidarity
to the 51st Convention of the Japanese Council of
Metalworkers. I am especially happy to be able to do it in the name of IndustriALL
Global Union. It is a new major organization founded in June in Copenhagen,
Denmark, as a result of a merger between the IMF, ICEM and ITGLWF.IndustriALL unites 50 million workers in mining, energy and manufacturing in 140 countries through strategically important supply chains. This unification offers us more power and more unity to tackle the major challenges that lie ahead us in a world without borders, in a world where we need to work together more than ever. Despite these positive perspectives, it was not an easy process. It is not easy to create something new. All of you who attended the founding Congress of IndustriALL, saw that there were no big disagreements on the political objectives. The problem was that everyone wanted to be on the Executive Committee of the new organization. I want to take the occasion to thank your wonderful leader, Brother Koichiro Nishihara, for your great leadership. Without your support, this major step would not have been possible. In addition, during the past years Japanese unions have taken an active role in building concrete international solidarity, in solving problems when they occur in different parts of the world, and thus promoting harmonious labor-management relations. Please continue! Dear Nishihara-san, in the regional conference in Copenhagen, you were also elected IndustriALL Chairperson for the Asia-Pacific region. I am looking forward to a continued good cooperation with you. The united power of the new IndustriALL family will give us a good base for building action on key goals defined in our Action Plan. Let me mention just three of them: First, organizing and building stronger unions. We need to increase our membership to build more power. We need to organize everyone, also precarious workers. Second, trade union rights. We need to make sure that every worker has the right to join a union of his/her choice and enjoy the protection of a collective agreement. We need to react to every violation by a government or a company. Third, fighting for a new economic and social model that puts people first. We need to put pressure on political decision-makers for investments in the creation of good quality jobs instead of precarious jobs, for the growth of manufacturing industry instead of financial speculation, and for comprehensive social protection for all citizens. Japan is a major player in the global economy, and Japanese companies are prominent in many industrial sectors represented by IndustriALL. You have an important role to play in helping workers around the world to join a union and uniting union activists into networks in Japanese enterprises. IndustriALL has 40 global framework agreements covering millions of workers in major companies including Volkswagen and Ford Motor Company, but only with one Japanese company, Mizuno. Please compete with each other to get more ? who will be next? These agreements are tools for developing harmonious labor-management relations and helping to solve problems when such arise. If you make progress, we can also be successful with companies from other Asia-Pacific countries. Dear Colleagues, I count on your support in building concrete global solidarity. I wish you a good Convention and best success in your valuable work in Japan, in the Asia-Pacific region and in the world.  ２．Matters for Reporting; Findings of Orgaizational Operation Review Committee,etc
After a break for lunch,the conference reports began with a general progress report from Assistant General Secretary (and Director of the International Affairs Bureau) Masahiro Nogi reporting on the general progress of the IMF-JC's activities over the past year. Additional reports were given on the progress of the Spring Offensive(by Assistant General Secretary Masahiro Inoue) ,IndustriAll Global Union Founded Convention's Report(by Masahiro Nogi), Findings of Organizational Administration Examination Committee(by General Secretary Hideyuki Wakamatsu),and the account settlements for FY2012 (by Assistant General Secretary Taichi Namekawa), along with the FY2012 financial auditor's report (by Auditor Yoshihiko Kawase). Each of these reports was accepted with unanimous applause by the participants. ３．Matters for Deliberation ◆2013-14 Action Program Discussed and Adopted The latter half of the convention involving the matters for deliberation was conducted by the moderator Akira Yakusue. The first matter was the 2013-14 Action Program. IMF-JC General Secretary Hideyuki Wakamatsu explained in a documation the political, economic, and industrial circumstances as well as the employment and labor environment. He then proposed the 2013-14 Action Program. Five industry-based member unions offered their opinions and requests from the standpoint of approval for the first draft, to which General Secretary Wakamatsu offered the head office's replies. The 2013-14 Action Program was then adopted with unanimous applause from the delegates. Five industry-based member unions
  General Secretary Hideyuki Wakamatsu
◆Rules and regulations partially amended, English abbreviation changed to JCM. No change to official
Japanese name. The next matters for discussion were the third (2012 general account surplus distribution), and fourth (2013 account budget) proposals. Assistant General Secretary Namekawa offered the proposals, which were approved with unanimous applause. ◆Election of New Officers: One New Female Executive Committee Members; Committee Expanded from 12 to 13 Members  On the matter of the election of new officers, Executive Committee Chairman
Yasunobu Aihara (JAW) explained the process and made proposals. In keeping
with the mid-term objective of greater involvement by women, more one sea
were assigned for female members for the Executive Committee, bringing
the number of committee members from 12 to 13. totally female executive
committeemembers become three .The new IMF-JC Executive Board for 2013-14,
with President Nishihara and General Secretary Wakamatsu retaining their
posts, was approved unanimously. Later the moderators introduced the new
officers and President Nishihara offered remarks on behalf of the new board.
Afterward, the retiring board members were recognized, with the eight retiring officers receiving another ovation from the participants in thanks for their service and with best wishes for their future activities.
|
Today, one year and five months after the Great East Japan Earthquake, the sounds of the hammers of reconstruction in the affected areas are still faint. To ensure places of employment that allow the victims to rebuild their lives, assistance must be provided for the business continuity and reconstruction of affected companies. I would like to call for organized and continuous support through cooperation on both central and local levels from governments, companies, trade unions, residents, and financial institutions, with sights set on 10 and 20 years in the future. 
I
UI Zensen, since its formation as the Textile Workers’ Asian Regional Association
(TWARO) in 1960, has provided support in both body and spirit to textile
workers in the Asian region. Then-president Minoru Takita, who played the
central role in the formation of TWARO, said, “No matter how many times
we feel betrayed or disappointed, if we do not keep the spirit to extend
a helping hand, the labor movement across vast Asia will be tired of us.
Japan absolutely cannot withdraw its hand of cooperation and support. If
we do not address poverty in Asia, we cannot achieve peace.” I hope the
formation of IndustriALL will bring together unions in Japan and contribute
to development of the labor movement in Asia. 
