Japan’s average minimum hourly wage to rise to 930 yen

Jiji PressTOKYO (Jiji Press) — Minimum hourly wages in Japan in fiscal 2021, which started in April, will increase by ¥28 from the previous year to ¥930 on average, marking the fastest pace of growth, the labor ministry said Friday.

The minimum required hourly wage will top ¥800 in all of the country’s 47 prefectures for the first time.

The Central Minimum Wages Council, which advises the labor minister, last month recommended raising minimum wages by ¥28 across the country in fiscal 2021.

Seven prefectures will increase minimum wages by over ¥28, an apparent effort to narrow gaps with others and prevent an outflow of labor.

Shimane will raise minimum wages by ¥32, Akita and Oita by ¥30, and Aomori, Yamagata, Tottori and Saga by ¥29. Five of the seven prefectures had the lowest minimum wage in fiscal 2020.

The new wages will take effect in stages, starting Oct. 1.

Tokyo will have the highest minimum wage, at ¥1,041. Kochi and Okinawa will each have the lowest, at ¥820. The highest wage is ¥221 higher than the lowest, unchanged from fiscal 2020.

In fiscal 2020, minimum wages rose by only ¥1 on average amid the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic following sharp increases in the previous four years.