Largest drop in bonus payments
Companies face the largest drop in winter bonus payments since 2009
Japanese companies’ winter bonus payments for 2020 are expected to fall 8.55 percent from a year ago, the largest decline since the 2009 global financial crisis, a Nikkei newspaper survey showed on Wednesday.
According to the Nikkei, the decline will surpass the 5.37% fall in summer incentive payments, demonstrating how the pressure on corporate income from the coronavirus pandemic is spreading to households.
In the summer and winter, Japanese businesses usually pay bonuses, which appear to fluctuate more than base wages as they represent shifts in the economy’s earnings and health.
According to the survey based on figures from 514 mostly listed businesses, almost 90 percent of companies that cut incentive payments cited deteriorating market conditions.
Travel restrictions and social-distancing measures have hammered airlines, restaurants and other service-sector companies to avoid the spread of COVID-19, dragging Japan’s economy into its deepest post-war recession in April-June.
As businesses restart operations, the economy is beginning to rebound, but many experts expect any recovery to be moderate due to a recent resurgence in infections.
Source: Japan Today
