A historical jump: minimum wage set to rise by 50 yen

While it doesn't sound like much in the grand scheme of things, it was announced today that minimum wages were recommended to rise by 50 yen per hour this year. It's the fourth year in a row that record increase suggestions have been made.

As the article linked above mentions, this is a recommendation made by a panel, so it's not set in stone – each prefecture will determine how much they will raise their respective minimum wages by. However, it's an encouraging sign that the panel recognizes the stress that many individuals and households are under, with prices of everything from groceries to utilities still climbing.

It might not sound like much, but the 50 yen per hour suggested increase is a record jump.

I know that 50 yen on its own may not sound like much, but that's 2000 yen per 40 hour work week for someone on minimum wage. It would certainly help to give a bit of breathing room, anyway.

Would 2000 yen a week make a difference to you?