Yesterday, April 29, the 93rd Central May Day Convention organized by the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (RENGO) was held in Yoyogi Park.
May Day was originally scheduled for May 1, but since it falls during Golden Week in Japan, it is customary to hold it on April 29, the first day of the consecutive holidays.
When I was a full-time officer of the labor union, I participated every year.
In Japan, the wage increase struggle takes place in February, when the policy is decided and demands are made to the company. After that, negotiations are repeated, and the agreement is reached in March.
Therefore, May Day is a kind of festival for workers after their struggle for higher wages.
In this year's wage struggle, many major companies appear to have increased their monthly wage base. However, the amount is still small, about 3,000 yen on average.
Considering the recent rise in consumer prices due to price hikes in utilities and food, wage increases for the next fiscal year should achieve at least 2-3%.
Many people in the Philippines are forced to live in hardship due to rising prices.
In this economic environment, it was reported that two labor organizations in the Philippines (TUCP and Alsa Kontraktwal) are demanding a large wage increase.
TUCP is requesting that the current minimum daily wage of 404 pesos be raised to 834 pesos, and Alsa Kontraktwal is requesting that the minimum daily wage be raised to 730 pesos.
The rationale for this is that a family of five needs at least 16,295 pesos per month to live, which, when divided by the number of working days, yields a wage of 834 pesos.
Doubling the minimum wage in one fell swoop may seem rather wild, but it is hard to imagine that a decent living is possible with a minimum wage of 404 pesos.
It is common knowledge that wages must be at least at a level that allows for labor reproduction.
Labor reproduction includes not only being able to afford food, clothing, shelter, and clothing at that wage and being able to go to work the next day, but also having one's children grow up and enter society as new workers.
So the level of wages is too low to be able to live on.
Many Filipinos go abroad to work because wages are too low to support their families even if they work domestically.
The amount of wages they remit to the Philippines from working abroad is over $35 billion in 2019, up to 9.8% of GDP.
Filipinos, who value their families above all else, go abroad to work even if they are separated from their families because they cannot earn a decent wage in the Philippines.
In that light, the request for a wage increase of more than two times may not be considered reckless.
