Photo/Illutration Tomoko Yoshino, chairwoman of Rengo (Japanese Trade Union Confederation), raises her fist to say “Ganbaro” (Let’s do our best) for higher wages in Tokyo on March 7. (Jumpei Miura)

The wage hike rate reached an average of 3.8 percent from the same time the previous year, Japan's most influential labor union group reported on March 17.

Rengo (Japanese Trade Union Confederation) released the first aggregate results that day, which showed an increase of 1.66 percentage points from the same time a year ago due to the unusually high cost of living and labor shortages.

If the figure exceeds 3 percent in the final aggregate results that are calculated at the end of June, it will mark a record high since 1994.

The figure was based on the reports submitted by Rengo's member labor unions before 10 a.m. on March 17.

The rate hike in wages includes across-the-board pay increases as well as the annual wage hike.

In recent years, the figure had remained around 2 percent. But the figure jumped this year.

However, across-the-board pay increases, which are important in raising the average wages for workers, were 2.33 percent on average. That is far below the central government’s estimate of the rate of increases in consumer prices for fiscal 2022, which was about 3 percent.

Although large companies have announced a major wage hike this year, it is not known if this trend will continue among smaller businesses.

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