Starting salary for municipal employees to increase by approximately 20,000 yen to match national level amid intensified competition with private sector.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Personnel Commission recommended on the 17th to increase the starting salary for metropolitan government employees (university graduate equivalent) by ¥19,800, bringing it to ¥290,400 (including regional allowance). In response to the increasingly intense competition with private companies for talent acquisition, starting salaries have been significantly raised continuously, reaching the same level as national government comprehensive positions.

The recommendation calls for increasing the monthly salary for all metropolitan government employees by an average of ¥13,580. This marks the fourth consecutive year of increases, with this year’s raise rate being 3.24%. This is the first time the increase has exceeded 3% since 1991, a gap of 34 years. The average annual income including bonuses will be approximately ¥7,345,000 (an increase of ¥255,000).

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Personnel Commission surveyed salaries from approximately 800 private companies and compared salary levels between companies with 100 or more employees and the metropolitan government. The recommendation aims to eliminate the gap in overall average salaries between employees.

Examples of annual income by position after the recommendation are: Clerk (age 22) ¥4,908,000; Senior Clerk (age 30) ¥5,853,000; Assistant Manager level (age 40) ¥7,843,000; Manager level (age 50) ¥11,706,000; Department Head level ¥13,997,000; Bureau Director level ¥19,269,000.

New graduates and management positions received particularly generous treatment. In addition to the starting salary increase, new graduates will receive a housing allowance doubled to ¥30,000 for those up to age 27.

Regarding management positions, the number of applicants has been decreasing due to factors such as the increasing complexity of work and concerns about organizational management. The application rate for promotion exams from senior clerk level to manager level was 35.7% in 2016 but dropped to 21.0% in 2024. Therefore, monthly salary increases will be set at approximately twice the employee average – ¥24,120 for manager level (age 50) and ¥29,400 for department head level – with the aim of increasing motivation for promotion.

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