Employees in the nation's manufacturing sector worked less overtime in April than a year earlier for the second consecutive month, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said Thursday.
Average overtime at manufacturers came to 13.5 hours, down 3.5 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said in a monthly report covering businesses with at least five employees.
Including nonmanufacturers, average overtime fell 2 percent to 10 hours for the second straight monthly fall. The average regularly paid wage in all industries fell 0.2 percent to 285,445 yen.
But the average wage, including bonuses and other extra payments, rose 0.2 percent to 292,505 yen for the first rise in three months.