Japan Airlines has notified its labor union of a plan to pay a winter bonus equivalent to three months' salary in this fiscal year.
If realized, the winter bonus will be the highest since the company's relisting on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2012.
The planned bonus is up sharply from the 1.7 months' salary for the fiscal 2022 winter bonus, reflecting the recovery of the company's earnings from the COVID-19 crisis. JAL paid a summer bonus worth two months' salary in fiscal 2023.
In fiscal 2018, before the pandemic, the company's annual bonus totaled 5.9 months' salary, including money provided at the end of the fiscal year.
JAL and rival All Nippon Airways are both enjoying substantial earnings recoveries thanks to robust demand for visits to Japan and domestic travel.
For fiscal 2023, which ends in March 2024, JAL has raised its consolidated earnings forecasts, expecting its full-year net profit to rise 2.3 times from the previous year to ¥80 billion.
Meanwhile, ANA has informed the labor side of a plan to pay a lump sum equivalent to one month's salary at the end of the fiscal year in March if the company achieves its full-year profit targets.
If the plan is realized, ANA's annual bonus, including two months' salary for both summer and winter bonuses, will exceed the previous year's amount of four months' salary.