Monthly wages at companies in Japan were raised on average by a record margin in 2015 on the back of economic recovery, a labor ministry survey showed Thursday.
Wages per month on average increased by 5,282 yen ($43), up 28 yen or 1.9 percent from the previous year, logging the largest margin since 1999 when comparable data became available, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.
The survey, conducted in August on companies with employees of 100 or more, drew responses from 1,661 firms.
A ministry official said, “On the back of the economic recovery, companies’ performance and employment situations have improved, leading to a continued significant rise in wages.”
A record-high 85.4 percent of the respondents said in the survey they have raised or were planning to increase wages, including base pay and family allowance, up from last year’s 83.6 percent.
Among companies with employees of 5,000 or more, monthly wages per worker increased 7,248 yen on average, topping the 7,000 threshold for the first time.
By sector, the construction industry raised monthly wages by 2.2 percent or 7,370 yen, the real estate industry by 2.2 percent or 6,381 yen, and the financial and insurance sector by 2.1 percent or 7,603 yen.
