A subcommittee of the Central Minimum Wage Council (an advisory body to the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare) met in Tokyo on the afternoon of August 1 to discuss the minimum wage increase for FY2022. The committee summarized the guideline, which is 961 yen per hour as the national average. This is an increase of 31 yen from the current average and the largest increase since the current system was adopted in FY2002. Against the backdrop of soaring prices, the rate of increase is 3.3%. The new amount will take effect in October.
The standard increase was divided into four ranks, A to D, depending on the economic situation of the region. Six prefectures including Tokyo in A increased by 31 yen, 11 prefectures including Kyoto in B increased by 31 yen, 14 prefectures including Fukuoka in C increased by 30 yen, and 16 prefectures including Tottori in D increased by 30 yen.
As a result, the minimum wage in Tokyo will be 1,072 yen starting this October.
The minimum wage is the lower limit of wages applicable to all workers. The minimum wage is based on the Minimum Wage Law, and companies that pay less than the minimum wage are subject to fines. Currently, the national average is 930 yen, and in recent years, with the exception of FY2020, the increase has been about 3% over the previous year. The increase in FY2021 was 28 yen, and in FY2022, in light of the sharp rise in prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and other factors, adjustments continued among representatives of labor and management, as well as experts, for an increase even higher than this.
The minimum wage is revised every fiscal year, taking into account the cost of living and wages in each worker’s region and the ability of companies to pay.
