January 21&22, 2015
The Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) has run into a contradiction in its wage hike policy. While calling for a curb on pay increases in this year’s wage talks, it admits that higher wages will contribute to realizing a “positive growth cycle” in the economy.
Seeking to win a monthly wage increase of over 20,000 yen and an increase of over 150 yen in the hourly wage, workers of the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) and the People’s Spring Struggle Joint Committee have recently kicked off this year’s spring wage struggle. The Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) calls for a 2% or more increase in basic wages.
Following the start of this year’s spring struggle, Keidanren on January 20 published a report by its committee on management and labor policy, known as the corporate basic policy for the annual pay bargaining round.
The growing public demand for higher wages and the increase in workers’ struggles under a slogan of achieving economic recovery through drastic wage hikes pushed Keidanren to admit the necessity of a pay raise in this year’s report.
In the report, Japan’s main business organization stressed that to link corporate earnings growth to better wages would create a positive growth cycle in the economy. It calls on its member companies with high earnings to consider offering pay raises with a “positive” attitude.
Keidanren also pointed out that the pace of recovery from the decline in personal consumption due to the consumption tax increase last year remains slower than expected. The government and business circles should take every conceivable step to boost domestic consumption, it stated.
The report, however, assumes a severe attitude toward an increase in base wages as it leads to pushing up the total amount of wages paid. It is preferable to increase workers’ annual income through granting periodic wage increases and higher seasonal bonuses based on good business performance, the report states.
Rejecting Rengo’s demand for a base pay increase of 2%, the report argued that the consumer-price index only rose by 1% last year after discounting the impact from the higher consumption tax rate. The report turns its back on the fact that workers’ real wages have been decreasing for 17 consecutive months due to rising prices.
Keidanren in the report also denied workers’ call for higher minimum wages which would contribute to a raise in the level of all workers’ wages and for the use of corporate internal reserves. Keidanren demanded the introduction of a system exempting employers from paying for overtime work.
Past related article:
> 2015 Spring Labor Offensive starts [January 15, 2015]
> Keidanren really accepts pay hikes? [January 21, 2014]
Seeking to win a monthly wage increase of over 20,000 yen and an increase of over 150 yen in the hourly wage, workers of the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) and the People’s Spring Struggle Joint Committee have recently kicked off this year’s spring wage struggle. The Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) calls for a 2% or more increase in basic wages.
Following the start of this year’s spring struggle, Keidanren on January 20 published a report by its committee on management and labor policy, known as the corporate basic policy for the annual pay bargaining round.
The growing public demand for higher wages and the increase in workers’ struggles under a slogan of achieving economic recovery through drastic wage hikes pushed Keidanren to admit the necessity of a pay raise in this year’s report.
In the report, Japan’s main business organization stressed that to link corporate earnings growth to better wages would create a positive growth cycle in the economy. It calls on its member companies with high earnings to consider offering pay raises with a “positive” attitude.
Keidanren also pointed out that the pace of recovery from the decline in personal consumption due to the consumption tax increase last year remains slower than expected. The government and business circles should take every conceivable step to boost domestic consumption, it stated.
The report, however, assumes a severe attitude toward an increase in base wages as it leads to pushing up the total amount of wages paid. It is preferable to increase workers’ annual income through granting periodic wage increases and higher seasonal bonuses based on good business performance, the report states.
Rejecting Rengo’s demand for a base pay increase of 2%, the report argued that the consumer-price index only rose by 1% last year after discounting the impact from the higher consumption tax rate. The report turns its back on the fact that workers’ real wages have been decreasing for 17 consecutive months due to rising prices.
Keidanren in the report also denied workers’ call for higher minimum wages which would contribute to a raise in the level of all workers’ wages and for the use of corporate internal reserves. Keidanren demanded the introduction of a system exempting employers from paying for overtime work.
Past related article:
> 2015 Spring Labor Offensive starts [January 15, 2015]
> Keidanren really accepts pay hikes? [January 21, 2014]
