TOKYO, November 7. The Japanese government decided on Friday to reduce the bonuses for its employees in fiscal 2020, the first time in 10 years, to narrow the gap with that of companies stricken by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The legislation to implement the decision will be submitted to the current extraordinary parliamentary session that runs until early December.

The changes are in line with the National Personnel Authority’s recommendation, as bonuses in the private sector were found to be lower than that of public servants amid the economic slowdown induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the new legislation introduced, the annual summer and winter bonuses for national public servants for fiscal 2020 will be equivalent to the salary of 4.45 months, down 0.05-month worth of wages compared to last fiscal year.

The annual income, meanwhile, will stand at an average of 6.73 million yen (65,000 U.S. dollars), down 21,000 yen (203.36 dollars).

According to local media reports, since public servants are not permitted to go on strikes or carry out collective bargaining, the authority on their behalf annually proposes the appropriate salary levels to the Cabinet and parliament to make sure that the levels of their wages and bonuses are on par with employees in private sectors. (Xinhua)