Takaichi Calls for Wage Hikes to Counter Inflation

Tokyo, Nov. 25 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called for sufficient wage increases to counter rising prices, at a government-labor-management panel meeting on Tuesday. This was the first meeting of the three-way panel under the Takaichi administration. The panel brings together labor and management representatives, as well as government officials, to discuss ways to improve the environment for continuous wage increases. “I ask for cooperation toward pay scale hikes that do not succumb to inflation,” Takaichi said at the meeting. “We’ll ensure wage increases,” the prime minister stressed, calling for pay hikes similar to those in recent years. In 2024 and 2025, the “shunto” annual labor-management negotiations resulted in wage increases of over 5 pct. However, price-adjusted real wages have remained on a downtrend, due to rising prices of food and other products. Next year’s shunto negotiations are expected to focus on whether significant wage hikes will continue despite uncertainties stemming from higher U.S. tariffs and tensions between Japan and China. Tuesday’s meeting was attended by Yoshinobu Tsutsui, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, Ken Kobayashi, head of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Tomoko Yoshino, head of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]