The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's council, which is discussing raising the minimum wage this year, entered into full-scale discussions on the 12th.
What will happen to the minimum wage as prices soar?
Non-regular workers who work at the minimum wage
"What does it mean to work for 7 or 8 hours and live normally ..." The
same hourly wage as the minimum wage.
This is a word leaked by a man who works irregularly.
He talked about his current life before the full-scale discussion about raising the minimum wage that started today.
"Even if I shop normally, I run out of money at the supermarket. If I check the receipt carefully, I don't think it's particularly wasteful, but in the end, each item is up. Do you feel
impatient on weekends ... "
says Takashi Kawabe (55), who lives in Tokyo.
When prices soar, living expenses are cut down, so recently, it is said that people often look for cheap stores to buy food and have lunch at 100-yen shop cup ramen.
Kawabe lives with his wife and parents.
Previously, he ran a bookbinding company with his parents.
However, he went out of business 10 years ago because his father was ill.
Now I work as a part-timer at a publishing company, managing book inventory 6 days a week from morning till evening.
The hourly wage is 1041 yen, which is the same as the minimum wage in Tokyo.
Due to the recent publishing recession, working hours have decreased, and monthly income is about 140,000 yen.
My wife's income and parents' pensions are available for part-time work, but it is said that life is difficult on its own.
After finishing the publishing work in the evening, Mr. Kawabe also double-worked at the factory in Saitama prefecture.
He works part-time about four days a week until around 10 pm.
Even if the two parts are combined, the monthly income is about 200,000 yen and the deposit is tens of thousands of yen.
Considering his old age, he says he intends to continue working as long as he can move.
Mr. Kawabe:
"I have to work long hours because the hourly wage is low, and I'm worried about how long this will continue considering my age. What does" a life where you can work for 8 hours and live normally "mean? I want you to raise the minimum wage in consideration of non-regular workers and those who work on an hourly basis. "
Raw material costs are also rising ...
"Today is a big shiitake mushroom. This is a supermarket. I choose and buy special items. When I don't have one, I go to several stores and buy them with the help of a part-time job."
At this restaurant in Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo .
, In order to reduce the cost of raw materials, it is said that they go to supermarkets to purchase other than the ones they usually use.
The price of some fish has risen by nearly 300 yen per kilo, and the price of vegetables continues to rise.
Although we are making efforts to reduce costs, raw material costs alone are increasing by about 200,000 to 300,000 yen a month.
This store employs 18 part-time workers.
The current hourly wage starts at 1050 yen, which is 9 yen higher than the minimum wage in Tokyo, and the amount increases according to work.
At this store, the hourly wage has been raised by 50 yen over three years in line with the recent increase in the minimum wage, and he hopes to continue raising the amount as much as possible, but he says he is worried.
One of them was the influence of the new Corona.
Due to the Korona-ka, annual sales have decreased by nearly 80%, and the number of customers has gradually returned, but it is said that it does not reach the previous level.
Soaring raw material costs added to that.
The restaurant manager who responded to the interview annoyedly said:
“In addition to foodstuffs, the prices of disposable chopsticks and hand towels are rising. I recognize that the discussion of the minimum wage is very important when considering employees, but it is also necessary to maintain management. Due to the strong influence of corona, the prices are high and the cost is rising, so I would be grateful if you could have a discussion that reflects the voices of the field as much as possible.
" According to the same survey, 91% of "accommodation / food and drink businesses" answered that the current minimum wage level was "a heavy burden" or "somewhat a burden", and labor costs for restaurants. There is also data showing that is a burden.
Minimum wage increase Enters full-scale discussion
On the 12th, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's council, which is discussing raising the minimum wage this year, has entered into full-scale discussions with both labor and management expressing their positions.
While workers insist on a level based on soaring prices, companies say it is difficult to raise prices significantly, and discussions are expected to focus on the extent of the increase in the future.
The minimum wage is the minimum wage that a company must pay to workers, and the amount is set for each prefecture, and the national average is currently 930 yen per hour.
Discussions on this year's increase began last month at the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's council, and at the second meeting held in Tokyo on the 12th, both labor and management expressed their position on the increase.
Labor "The viewpoint of high prices is important" Envoy "Corporate prices are rising"
Workers insisted on raising prices in light of rising prices, saying, "Investing in people is necessary while the economy is on a recovery trend. This is especially important from the perspective of rising prices."
The company side demanded a cautious discussion, saying, "Small and medium-sized enterprises are still tough when it comes to economic recovery. Corporate prices are rising and a large increase in the minimum wage may make it difficult to continue business."
According to the Bank of Japan's announcement on the 12th, the preliminary figures for the corporate goods price index, which shows the prices of goods traded between companies, last month (June) were 113.8 at the level of 100 on average in 2020, and in May. Then it reached a record high.
The rate of increase compared to the same month of the previous year has continued to be high at 9.2%, mainly due to the continued rise in energy prices such as crude oil following the military invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
Last year, the focus was on the largest increase ever
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, there is no big disagreement between the two sides regarding the necessity of raising the price in this year's discussion.
Last year, the national average of the increase in the minimum wage was 28 yen, the highest ever, but this year it seems that the focus will be on how much the increase will be as the effects of rising prices spread.
The council is expected to proceed with discussions in the direction of showing a guideline for the amount of increase by the end of this month.
Keyword: What is the minimum wage?
The minimum wage is the minimum wage a company must pay to its employees and is expressed in hourly wages.
It is set to stabilize the lives of workers, and penalties will be imposed if the company does not comply.
The amount is to be reviewed every year, and after the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's council gives an estimate of the amount to be raised, labor and management will discuss each prefecture to determine the final amount.
Regarding the minimum wage, the so-called "reversal phenomenon" in which one month's income is lower than the amount of welfare received has become a problem, and 11 years ago, the law was amended to determine the minimum wage in consideration of the level of welfare. rice field.
After that, the increase was started at a relatively high level, and in 2014, the national average was 780 yen per hour, and for the first time, the reversal phenomenon with livelihood protection was resolved in all prefectures.
In addition, the government has set a goal of raising it by about 3% every year so that it will reach an average of 1,000 yen nationwide in the future, such as in the "100 Million Total Success Plan" decided in 2016.
(Updated in August 2018)
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From the political word "minimum wage"