The red, blue and green flags of labor unions fluttered in front of the towering headquarters of a major bank in Tokyo's Marunouchi business district in early September as about 200 workers shouted, "The bank ought to carry out its social responsibility" and "We don't forgive the bank for dismissing workers."
The protesters were members of the union at Ikegai Corp., a failed machine tool maker based in Kawasaki, and their supporters.
The company went bankrupt at the end of February and applied for court protection from creditors under the Civil Rehabilitation Law.