Women’s groups of Iwate Jichiroren and Akita Jichiroren held their first joint discussion meeting with 36 members at the Iwate Prefecture Public Hall on June 29. Twenty-five members participated from Iwate Jichiroren. Marie Tamura, the head of the Iwate Jichiroren women’s group, said in her opening address, “I hope you will share anything you have in your mind, including your concerns, and get useful information. Let’s enjoy the interaction.”

　Tomoko Sugimori, leading the women’s group at the Jiciroren central office, gave a talk entitled, “How to build a better workplace for employees.” Referring to years of her experience as a welfare municipal worker in Tokyo, she spoke about efforts to improve the workplace environment and the importance of communicating with people.

　After that, divided into smaller groups by job category, they shared their concerns about relations with coworkers and workloads. They also talked about when they felt joy and how they overcame difficulties in serving residents.