In this heavy atmosphere, a directors meeting was held in Osaka to decide what approach to take towards the union once-and-for-all. Some thought that taking a firm stand in order to restore order to the company was required, while others maintained that keeping discussion open was the only way to avoid the worst outcome.

It came down to the Saburo Kobayashi's decision. He was listening to the committee's discussion as always, but suddenly just got up and left the room. He was gone for 30 minutes.

When he returned to his seat there was no more hesitation. He made a clear decision to take a firm stand from then on. No one know what the president did in those 30 minutes, but they supposed that he needed some time alone to consider the decision: to take a stand and weather the confusion that would surely follow, or not.

On April 27th, as specified in the company regulations, a disciplinary committee meeting was held, and the committee unanimously decided on disciplinary dismissal of 23 employees. Notices were delivered on May 2nd to 12 of them who had no extenuating circumstances. As though they had been just waiting for the notices, the union immediately responded by initiating an indefinite, company-wide strike. The company was unyielding to the unreasonable demands and the union was left with no place to shake its fist. Concern that it could go long-term increased as the strike stretched to over a month in no time.

Disgruntled voices started to emerge from the Branch Union membership, and membership withdrawals started to increase. As the strike grew longer, the feelings of frustration grew stronger among the union executive and leadership.

When the strike started, 130 of the company's 240 employees were members of the Branch Union, 75 the Employee union, and the rest were not union members. Both Employee Union and the HQ Union members were exposed to the crisis of the reckless strike in their workplaces. Both of these unions, of their own accord, confronted Branch Union members everywhere, and appealed to reality on behalf of their customers and trading partners.

Even as a month passed and two months drew near, the company showed not a hint of a compromising word. During the strike, the main office was occupied by the union, paralyzing its business efforts, so the Shinjuku and Yokohama offices, which continued business during the strike, covered its region. A steady stream of staff was sent from Osaka to support them, desperately filling gaps left by absent Branch Union members. Feeling their shaky prospects keenly, and driven to the wall, the Branch Union presented its case to the Tokyo Metropolitan Labor Committee.

Even with this change of conditions, the company did not relent in its position. The members of the Labor Committee also demanded that the Branch Union make concessions.

However, the end of the strike was announced without success for the union. On July 10, the union formally accepted the settlement proposed by the Labor Committee. The conditions were almost completely according to the company's requests. Of the 12 employees that received dismissal notices, approval was given to dismiss six, at the company's disgression. The union's defeat on all fronts finally put an end to the 70-day ordeal.