Japanese retail giant, AEON, announced plans to increase wages for its part-time and temporary contract workers. The move is a response to the rising cost of living in Japan and follows similar announcements from other companies in the country.
AEON plans to raise wages by an average of 7% for hourly workers at its 147 stores, including supermarket and convenience store employees. The company will negotiate specific wage rates with the labor union and plans to implement the increase in March.
In addition, AEON stated that it is considering raising wages for full-time employees as well.
With a workforce of approximately 400,000 part-time workers, AEON’s decision to increase wages could serve as an inspiration for other large companies in Japan to follow suit. The retail giant’s wage increase is a positive step towards addressing the growing issue of inflation in the country.