Tag - wages

 
 

WAGES

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in New York on Wednesday
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 25, 2023
Kishida outlines new economic measures for 'sustainable wage growth'
Some of the measures are intended to raise earnings by easing workers’ concerns about so-called annual income barriers.
The new invoice system, which goes into effect Oct. 1, is forcing many freelancers in Japan to choose between raising their prices or suffer a 10% loss in revenue.
COMMUNITY / How-tos
Sep 25, 2023
Freelancers aren’t happy with Japan’s new invoice system
For many freelancers and small businesses, the result will amount to a 10% increase in taxes.
High-paid and low-income workers are more likely to take up second jobs, albeit for different reasons, a government study has shown.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 24, 2023
Higher-paid and low-wage workers more likely to work second jobs
A survey suggested that middle-income employees are less interested in pursuing side jobs due to long work hours.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda during a news conference at the central bank's headquarters in Tokyo on Friday
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 22, 2023
BOJ maintains its dovish monetary easing amid policy speculation
Comments by Gov. Kazuo Ueda in an interview earlier this month had sparked speculation that the BOJ might move to change policy at an earlier date.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference last Wednesday following a Cabinet reshuffle.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 20, 2023
Kishida may reveal priority areas for economic package next week
The size of an envisaged fiscal 2023 state supplementary budget to finance the economic measures will be a major focus, informed sources said.
A United Auto Workers (UAW) union member holds a sign to mark the beginning of contract negotiations in Sterling Heights, Michigan, in July.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 17, 2023
U.S. auto talks at 'critical phase' as political pressure grows
Workers at all Big Three automakers are coordinating for the first time, with demands such as a 40% pay increase over a four-year contract.
Private-sector surveys point to severe labor shortages in Japan for decades to come, with one estimating a shortfall of over 11 million workers by 2040. The nation had around 67 million workers as of July.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Sep 16, 2023
Japan labor market set for change as huge worker shortage looms
Japan may be at an inflection point as the nation braces for a shortfall of millions of workers, the rise of generative AI and risks to economic security.
Former Spanish football federation chief Luis Rubiales' forced kiss on player Jenni Hermoso drew global protests from women's rights advocates.
SOCCER
Sep 12, 2023
Luis Rubiales quits, but women’s soccer in Spain is still troubled
Even after the federation chief's resignation over his forcible kiss of a player, pay disputes are threatening to disrupt domestic leagues.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a government meeting on his concept of "new capitalism" in Tokyo on Aug. 31.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 11, 2023
Economists question the wisdom of Kishida's new minimum wage target
Japan aims to lift the minimum wage to ¥1,500 by the mid-2030s, but macroeconomic factors could undermine that target.
The average for summer bonuses this year was slightly higher than the ¥845,453 in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, and trailed only the ¥870,731 in 2018, the labor ministry said Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 9, 2023
2023 summer bonuses second-highest on record in Japan
Bonuses at major Japanese companies this summer averaged ¥845,557, up 1.59% from a year before, the labor ministry has announced.
The total value of unpaid household tasks was ¥111 trillion for women and ¥32 trillion for men in 2021, according to a recent Cabinet Office report, indicating the amount of men's work around the home is less than a third of what women do.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 4, 2023
Japanese women are missing out on ¥111 trillion in unpaid wages
A recent report has highlighted both the wage gap between men and women, as well as the sheer amount of uncompensated work that gets done in Japan.
The price for regular gasoline is ¥192 per liter at a gas station in the city of Nagano on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Sep 1, 2023
Extended gasoline subsidy risks harming Japan's net-zero efforts
The politically tricky decision on ending the program could hamper the shift to EVs and efforts to reach climate change goals.
Over the last decade, the attention given to falling income and wealth inequality has been tiny, creating a view of the issue that may be seriously out of date.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 29, 2023
We should concentrate on fighting poverty, not income inequality
Wealth inequality has recently gone down in the U.S. and the West, and the decline has been going on for the better part of the last decade.
The Bank of Japan's headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2023
Financial expert warns against delay in BOJ policy shift
Izuru Kato predicted that the BOJ will likely raise its short-term policy rate from below zero in "January or April next year."
The income gap remained wide among Japanese households in 2021, but the labor ministry said measures to keep unemployment low helped prevent the gap from widening further.
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2023
Japan's household income gap neared record high amid pandemic
A key parameter for measuring income inequalities, known as the Gini coefficient, came to 0.5700, worsening 0.0106 point from the previous study in 2017.
Spanish midfielder Alexia Putellas (left) battles for the ball against English forward Lauren James during in the final of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Sydney on Sunday. Spain won the match 1-0.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 22, 2023
FIFA boss should read the pitch on women’s pay
More than 2 billion people are expected to have tuned in. About 2 million attended matches in person. Both records. The FIFA Women’s World Cup generated more than $570 million to break even.
Spain players celebrate with the trophy after winning the World Cup in Sydney on Sunday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 22, 2023
Success of Women's World Cup can't hide financial gap with men
The 2023 World Cup buoyed hopes that the women's game can start to bridge the yawning financial gap.
Members of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, commonly known as Rengo, raise their fists as they cheer during their annual May Day rally to demand higher pay and better working conditions, in Tokyo, in  April.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 19, 2023
Japan eyes expanding tax breaks for firms raising wages
The industry ministry will include plans to expand the program in its tax system reform proposal for fiscal 2024, which starts next April.
A meeting is held in Tokyo on July 28 to decide on the recommended minimum wages.
BUSINESS
Aug 18, 2023
Some minimum wage hikes in Japan to top government recommendation
The new minimum wages for fiscal 2023, which began in April, will take effect in stages beginning Oct. 1.
More investors in the Tokyo stock market are beginning to see higher pay as a useful barometer of a company’s strength.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 18, 2023
Stock pickers cheer for wage hikes in post-deflationary Japan
A group of companies that raised wages higher than many of their peers has outperformed the Topix index by 5 percentage points so far this quarter.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores