Japan Considers Delay for Minimum Wage Goal

Tokyo, June 26 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government is considering delaying its goal of raising the country’s average minimum hourly wages to 1,500 yen by the end of the 2020s, people familiar with the matter said Friday. One idea being discussed is allowing a delay until the earliest possible time in the first half of the 2030s, the people said. The revised time frame will be included in a national growth strategy to be drawn up by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration soon, they said. The administration of her predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, set the current goal by moving up the target from the middle of the 2030s at the latest, as sought by the administration of Ishiba’s predecessor, Fumio Kishida. Japan’s average minimum hourly wages in fiscal 2025, which ended in March, stood at 1,121 yen, up 66 yen, or 6.3 pct, from the preceding year. Calculations show that minimum wages would need to be raised at a pace of over 7 pct every year to reach 1,500 yen by the end of the 2020s. Raising wages at such a rapid pace for successive years is a heavy burden, especially for small and midsize companies, which are concerned over possible impacts on their operations. In April, the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other business lobbies called for a review of the time frame, saying what the government is aiming for does not match reality for employers. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]