Photo/Illutration The government building housing the labor ministry (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Wages in Japan slightly increased in 2021 from a year earlier but remained flat when adjusted for rises in consumer prices, according to preliminary figures released by the labor ministry on Feb. 8.

Nominal monthly pay was an average 319,528 yen ($2,770) in 2021, up 0.3 percent from the previous year, while the real wage index, which reflects purchasing power in line with the consumer price index, remained unchanged year on year, the labor statistics for 2021 showed.

Most wage indexes, including base pay, were up from 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a heavy blow to businesses.

But special payment, which includes bonuses, dropped by 0.7 percent year on year to 55,767 yen per month in 2021 mainly because of smaller summer bonuses.

Overtime pay for part-time workers was down 6.7 percent from a year earlier to 2,495 yen, reflecting a drop in their working hours amid the pandemic.

The decline in overtime pay was 26.7 percent for those working in the restaurant and lodging industries, which were hit particularly hard by the government’s request for the public to help contain the virus by avoiding nonessential outings.

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