Demonstrating Against Miyako Island's Authoritarian Corporate Culture: The Island's Second Ever Demonstration in History

In Okinawa's Miyako Island there still exits a culture of the company president being like a god and workers being his or her slaves. There is no culture where workers can “talk” with management. The only private company where a trade union operates is the Miyako Mainichi Shimbun Newspaper. On June 4, more than 100 unionists and supporters marched through the streets to raise awareness of the island as whole on the importance increasing unions to advocate for workers rights, and to protest against the ongoing unfair actions taken by the Miyako Mainichi Shimbun Newspaper (see photo). This is only the second time ever in the island's history that workers have demonstrated for their rights. The demonstration was followed in the evening by a Symposium to Consider the Rights of Workers in Miyako Island in which other unions also participated. (Written by Chie Matsumoto)


「社長は神様。労働者は奴隷」の宮古島で史上2回目のデモ
　沖縄県・宮古島では、「社長は神様。労働者は奴隷」といった考えがまだあり、経営者と「話し合う」文化がない。民間資本の企業で労働組合が存在するのは、唯一、宮古毎日新聞社だけだ。島全体に、労働組合を増やし働く者の権利を主張する大切さを理解してもらおうと、6月4日、宮古毎日新聞労働組合とその支援者100名以上が市内をデモ行進し、不当労働行為を続ける宮古毎日新聞社で抗議行動を行った（写真）。労働者の権利デモは島史上二回目。また夜には、他組合とともに「宮古島で労働者の権利を考えるシンポジウム」を開催した。（松元千枝）