Japanese workers' real wages declined for the fourth consecutive year as pay increases failed to keep pace with inflation.
According to the labor statistics survey (final figures) for last year released by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on Thursday, real wages per worker at companies with five or more employees fell 0.5% from the previous year, extending the decline to four straight years.
Total cash earnings, which correspond to nominal wages, rose 2.5%, but high inflation translated into a decline in real wages. In the first quarter of this year, however, Japanese workers' real wages rose 1.3%, supported by pay-driven increases in earnings and a slowdown in inflation.
The April consumer price index released by Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications the same day rose 1.4% from a year earlier, excluding volatile fresh food prices, remaining below 2% for the third consecutive month. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun analyzed that government fuel subsidy policies and other measures have curbed energy price increases, helping to maintain a relatively low inflation rate.
Meanwhile, the employment rate for new job seekers graduating from universities this spring stood at 98.0% as of the first of last month. This marked the second-highest level since the statistics began in 1997, following last year's reading, indicating that job seekers continue to hold an edge in Japan's labor market.
