Robert Besser
23 Jan 2023, 19:30 GMT+10
TOKYO, Japan: More than half of major Japanese companies are planning to raise wages this year, after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida encouraged them to do so in order to help workers cope with rising retail prices, according to Reuters.
Kishida has urged companies to increase their employees' wages, which have not kept up with the inflation rate, described as the highest in 40 years.
Last week, Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing Co said it would raise wages by as much as 40 percent.
Before spring's "shunto" labor negotiations, managers at 24 percent of the companies polled said they are considering wide-ranging salary increases, along with scheduled wage increases, while another 29 percent said they would carry out regular pay increases only, while 38 percent were undecided.
"Prime Minister Kishida has been saying raise wages, raise wages, but the decision to hike pay is not done on the words of a prime minister or president. Rather, it's because a company needs better human resources to achieve its growth potential," said Masayuki Kubota, chief strategist at Rakuten Securities, as quoted by Reuters.
However, small and medium-sized firms that provide most jobs in Japan are less enthusiastic about Kishida's call.
Among the 495 firms polled in Reuters October survey, 54 percent of companies supported the defense spending plan, but only 29 percent backed the increase in corporate tax rates, while 81 percent said they agreed with a substantial increase in defense spending, but only 20 percent said corporate taxes should be raised to pay for it.
Get a daily dose of Oakland Times news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Oakland Times.
More InformationThe Philadelphia Eagles are the early favorites to beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12, ...
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 50 points and 13 rebounds and the host Milwaukee Bucks rolled to a 135-110 victory over the ...
New York [US], January 30 (ANI) The Adani Group has attempted to conflate its meteoric rise and the wealth of ...
The Washington Mystics reached a multiyear deal with free-agent guard Brittney Sykes, according to multiple reports on Sunday. Sykes, 28, ...
Adama Sanogo and No. 19 UConn will attempt to climb back to the .500 mark in Big East play when ...
© Provided by Xinhua BEIJING, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- The United States has suffered 44 mass shootings this year as ...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: After being convicted of stealing more than $900,000 from the company, Rosita Joseph, former executive ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: The US State Department has said that in the latest fiscal year, US military equipment exported to foreign ...
MACAU CITY, Macau: Over the Lunar New Year holiday, Macau, the world's largest gambling hub, witnessed a resurgence of tourists ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: Republican US Senator Josh Hawley has said that he plans to introduce a bill to ban the use ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: This week, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed significant limits on levels of lead in processed ...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Finland and Sweden are prepared to join the NATO alliance, the U.S. State Department announced this week.The move ...