By Fred Henley

Last Friday, the union’s representatives sat at the bargaining table with ECC’s management to discuss annual demands for workplace improvements. The full list of demands submitted to the company is:

1. Grant a 5% pay raise to all union members
2. Expand a previous collective agreement regarding unpaid medical leave to allow for more recovery time for workers
3. Pay workers their salaries before bank holidays, not after
4. Create a clear and smooth method for applying for leave for painful menstruation
5. Making “Teaching Staff” workers eligible for annual pay raises
6. Create a plan to eventually eliminate “Teaching Staff” contract completion bonuses and integrate their value into the annual salary
7. Allow “Teaching Staff” in the 4th, 5th, and 6th years of employment to earn a 160,000円 contract completion bonus

Due to time constraints only demands 1, 2, 3, and 7 were discussed. Demand 7 was accepted by the company immediately, and the discussion of the other demands is not closed off, so this is a good start to negotiations. In subsequent meetings, the other demands will be discussed and the company will inch toward a final offer for union members to examine.

General Union has been negotiating with companies large and small for 3 decades for improvements to working conditions. If you have a problem at your work, or you just want to make it better, reach out to us for a consultation at https://generalunion.org/consult/