Call for Endorsement and Participation: November 1 National Workers’ All-out Rally
National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba)
National Movement Against Division and Privatization of JNR and for Revocation of Dismissals of 1,047 Workers Grand March Against Constitutional Revision and War
There has never been a greater need to transform the labor movement; now is the time for labor unions to stand at the forefront of the anti-war struggle. With this firm resolve, we are organizing the November 1 National Workers’ All-out Rally for 2026. The November rally movement—built up together with comrades nationwide and fought uncompromisingly against the attacks of division and privatization of Japan National Railways—serves as invaluable foundations for the labor movement’s transformation, which we have carried out through our utmost efforts amidst a challenging situation. We are determined to advance that struggle further now.
The Takaichi government is manipulating the phrase “changes in the security environment” like a magic spell to silence criticism and is attempting to pour the nation’s entire energy into a war of aggression against China. Amidst clamorous incitement stirred up by her remark: “Taiwan contingency could constitute an existence-threatening situation,” and the government’s calls to build a robust “denial defense posture,” society is on the verge of being swallowed by a wartime regime. We must not allow the repetition of the history of wars of aggression once waged under the slogans like “Punish Savage China” and “Peace in the East.”
Acting in lockstep with the US Trump government, Takaichi is charging ahead with the militarization of Okinawa and the Nansei Islands; the total lifting of the ban on exporting lethal weapons; a shift toward a wartime economy driven by a “virtuous cycle of security and economic growth” and the establishment of “sustained combat capabilities”; the enactment of Anti-Espionage Act and penalties for desecrating the national flag; the revision of the Imperial House Law; the abandonment of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles and further revision of the Three Security Documents; and the initiation of constitutional revision.
The fundamental reality of the current situation is that US imperialism, driven by a crisis with no way out, has embarked on a war of aggression aimed at regime change in China—which it designates as its “greatest threat.” From Iran, Gaza/Palestine, and Venezuela to Ukraine, the world is overshadowed by the threat of a global war, nuclear war. No matter how small the initial step, we must build a workers’ struggle to halt the war, organizing countless demonstrations and strikes. The power to stop war and transform society lies precisely in the united struggle of the working class.
Young people and women are rising up to fight in increasing numbers. The voices of angry youth are flooding the area in front of the Diet, accompanied by an ongoing battle against right-wing groups and police force seeking to crush them, as well as those attempting to confine the movement within the existing order until it dissipates. The times are shifting. Yet, the labor unions—which ought to be empowering this struggle, expanding it nationwide, and sustaining its momentum—have failed to take the lead. Now is the time to revitalize militant labor unions. It is with this firm resolve that we call for this rally. Let us rise up to oppose the transformation of Okinawa into a front line military base and to block constitutional revision! Let us confront discrimination and xenophobia—including the exclusion of foreign workers and residents, as well as discrimination against women—and overthrow the reactionary administration!
Amidst ceaseless price hikes, everything essential for survival—workers’ wages and employment, social security systems, and healthcare and nursing care services—is being devastated.
As we approach 2027—marking the 80th anniversary of the enactment of labor laws—drastic rollbacks to these laws are being pushed forward under the guise of “labor market reform.” Workers’ rights are being fundamentally denied and dismantled. Labor laws are being reshaped to effectively negate fundamental labor rights (the rights to organize, bargain collectively, and strike—Article 28 of the Constitution). The aim is to drive out labor unions and create a “society without unions.” Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) has even begun advocating for the semi-forced relocation of the workforce into sectors such as the military industry. Yet, far from fighting this, Rengo (Japanese Trade Union Confederation)—under the banner of a “growth strategy”—has aligned itself with the government and corporations to push for a massive military buildup and the wholesale expansion of defense-related industries. Japan faces a reality akin to a “failed state,” where the very foundation of society seems to be collapsing. Now, more than ever,
we need labor unions that are ready to fight. Voices of anger are mounting, and the conditions for revitalizing the labor movement are undoubtedly ripening.
The starting point for this reality was the division and privatization of the Japan National Railways (JNR) in 1987 and the dissolution of Sohyo (General Council of Trade Unions of Japan) in 1989 followed by the formation of Rengo. JR capital remains at the forefront of these attacks. The postwar Japanese labor movement suffered a defeat, and workers’ rights plummeted.
The November Rally was launched to resist these attacks. Its guiding spirit was to rally the power of workers on the shop floor, unite them, and revitalize the labor movement. We rose up in strikes against the division and privatization, even at the cost of forty of our members being fired. We continue to fight for the reinstatement of the 1,047 railway workers dismissed due to privatization. This struggle has involved an intense battle against the state and its policies; we secured irrefutable evidence that the JNR division and privatization constituted an act of illegal state-sponsored union-busting, yet just as witness testimony was about to begin, the presiding judge was suddenly transferred, and the new judge rejected the call for witnesses. Nevertheless, we firmly believe that the revitalization of the labor movement lies within carrying through this very struggle.
The November Rally has grown significantly as a struggle for international worker solidarity; notably, it has been waged as a “Tokyo-Seoul International Joint Action” in partnership with the Seoul Regional Council of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU). This year, too, workers and labor unions from around the world will gather. The rally will be held under the slogan: “Let us stop war through worker solidarity beyond borders!”
Due to renovation work at the Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall, this year’s event will be an indoor rally. We are determined to make this a rally that re-establishes the direction of our struggle in the face of a changing era and marks a fresh start for the further expansion of the November Rally movement. The “Grand March Movement”—a co-organizing group—is also planning a nationwide anti-war rally for November 22nd. We are resolved to turn this November—taking place during an extraordinary Diet session that promises to be a historic turning point—into a pivotal moment for the struggle in Japan. We earnestly call upon our comrades nationwide to join us. We earnestly call upon our fellow workers across the country and around the world to join us and endorse us.
Name: November 1st National Workers’ All-out Rally
Date/Time: November 1, 2026 (Sun), starting at noon; demonstration to follow the rally
Venue: Asakusa Public Hall, Tokyo (1-38-6 Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo)
Contact: National Railway Motive Power Union of Chiba (Doro-Chiba)
<dooro-chiba@doro-chiba.org>
