By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
TOKYO, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Japan’s biggest business lobby shrugged off on Tuesday calls for wage hikes as it braced for key spring salary negotiations with labour unions, calling blanket pay rises “unrealistic” as companies are hit by fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.
Keidanren, unveiling a guide to the upcoming wage talks which will be wrapped up in mid-March, stressed that the priority was job protection rather than wage hikes, given the current economic and health crisis.
The business lobby’s cautious stance signalled tough negotiations with labour unions led by Rengo, which has called for uniform base pay hikes around 2%, after last year when the management offered the lowest wage increases in seven years.