61682 Takeshi Nagano, Chairman of Nikkeiren, the management's designated headquarters for labor policies and strategy planning, has already launched the "zero-increase" policy.
61683 He had successfully kept a tight rein on labor for the past three years with the same slogan.
61684 To turn the Japanese economy around, Nikkeiren emphasizes that no wage increase must be offered for the time being.
61685 At the same time, the report, titled "Revitalization of the Japanese Economy and Challenges for Employers, Labor and Management" presented by the Nikkeiren's labor issue study committee at the general meeting states as follows.
61686 "Wage determination commensurate with productivity and solvency," "Look at employment, work hours and wage together as a whole," and "Maintain and improve the real wage by reduction of prices."
61687 Breaking the "follow-the-herd" wage increase formula of the spring labor offensive is the message at the core of the report.
61688 Further, the tone carried through in this report is the recognition that Japan has become a complete and total "high-cost" country.
61689 As contributing factors, it cites the low productivity of industries under protection and regulations, still overly expensive land prices, and the high appreciation of the yen generated by the lopsided economical structure with a central focus on the two foregoing points.
61690 On the other hand, by now everyone says that the Japanese economy has matured and points out that the hollowing out of industry is in progress.
61691 Drastic deregulations should be carried out.
61692 Markets should be boldly opened.
61693 Unless we expose all industries to international competition, Japan's economy will remain in a rut.
61694 I am not saying that these arguments and views are off the mark.
61695 However, it was not labor's choice to bring on the current situation.
61696 If anything, where labor may have been to blame is their preoccupation with cooperating with management even during the times when the economic climate was such that they could have won substantial wage increases.