Japan Workers’ Pay Surges to New High; U.S. Trails
WASHINGTON — Wages in Asia are increasing far faster than those in the United States, with factory workers’ pay in Japan surging ahead that of U.S. workers, according to a Labor Department report.
While many booming Asian economies still lag behind in workers’ pay, Japan’s average hourly pay rose to $19.01 in 1993, the latest year for which figures are available. It was a new high for Japan and well above the U.S. average for the year: $16.73 an hour.
Two decades ago, Japanese pay of $3 an hour was less than half the U.S. average.
The figures include benefits, such as health insurance, paid on behalf of workers by employers.
In U.S. dollars, wages in Japan trailed U.S. wages until 1992, when they moved a few cents an hour ahead. U.S. workers’ average hourly wages gained only 58 cents in 1993, while Japanese wages jumped by $2.73.
Many workers in Western Europe earned more than those of either Japan or the United States in 1993: $25.71 an hour in western Germany, $22.63 in Switzerland, $21.21 in Belgium and $20.27 in Austria.
Some of the increase in Japan reflects the declining value of the dollar against yen, and the effect of Japan’s higher wages is offset by generally higher prices for consumer goods.
Indeed, the U.S. forces that begin landing on the island today will depend explicitly on Cedras’ cooperation for their success. One of the first tasks of the commander of the U.S. expeditionary force, Lt. Gen. Henry Hugh Shelton, will be an official call on Cedras.
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