The average total cash earnings per worker in March was about 286,000 yen, an increase of 1.2% compared to March last year due to an increase in overtime pay.
On the other hand, real wages, which reflect price fluctuations, were 0.2% lower than in March last year, and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare says, "Real wages are negative due to rising prices, and we would like to keep an eye on future trends."
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is conducting a "Monthly Labor Statistics Survey" targeting more than 30,000 business establishments nationwide with five or more employees, and announced the preliminary figures for March on the 9th.
According to this, the average total cash salary per worker in March, including basic salary and overtime pay, was 286,567 yen, an increase of 1.2% compared to March last year.
Of these, "specially paid cash earnings" such as bonuses were 25,517 yen, an increase of 10.7% from March last year, and overtime pay, etc. were 18,801 yen, an increase of 2.5% from March last year. Compared to the same month of the previous year, it has been positive for 12 consecutive months.
On the other hand, reflecting the fluctuations in prices, real wages in March fell 0.2% from March last year, and the index with an average of 100 in 2020 was 88.8.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, "Wages received by workers have been positive, but real wages have been negative due to rising prices. I would like to keep an eye on future trends."