This article talks about the average annual salary of IT engineers in Japan and the reasons why the annual salary of IT engineers is said to be low. By reading this article, you will be able to understand why the annual salary of IT engineers is said to be low.
Are IT engineers in Japan earning less than their counterparts overseas?
In conclusion, the annual salary of IT engineers in Japan is not necessarily lower than overseas. According to the “Comparative Survey of IT Human Resources in Different Countries,” published by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry of Japan, the annual salary of IT engineers in Japan is second only to that in the U.S. However, the annual salary of IT engineers in the U.S. is lower.
When compared to the annual salary of IT engineers in the U.S., there is a large difference in the amount of money. Furthermore, while IT engineer salaries are rising worldwide, Japanese IT engineer’s salaries have not risen much.
Average Annual Salary of IT Engineers in Japan
According to the “Occupational Information Providing Website” published by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the average annual salary for IT engineers in Japan is 5.58 million yen. Since the average annual salary in Japan as a whole is around 4.3 million yen, it can be said that the average annual salary of IT engineers is high compared to other occupations.
Reasons for the low annual salary of IT engineers in Japan
The annual salary of IT engineers is not necessarily low compared to other occupations, but it is often said to be low. The reason for this is that some IT engineers earn a high income and many IT engineers earn a low income.
So why is this the case? Here we will explain the reasons why IT engineers are said to have low annual salaries.
Evaluation is based on seniority
Although many companies in the IT industry have adopted a relatively performance-based evaluation system, many companies still base their evaluations on seniority. Because seniority-based evaluation systems emphasize years of service, annual salaries are higher for personnel who have been with a company longer than for those who have more skills
Therefore, even if you are an excellent engineer, seniority does not allow you to earn an annual salary commensurate with your skills as long as you have been with the company for only a few years.
There is a problem with the structure of the industry. The reason why the annual salary of IT engineers is said to be low is due to the structure of the IT industry in Japan. The IT industry has a vertical pyramid structure, and the more one moves from the client company to the main contractor, subcontractor, or sub-subcontractor, the less remuneration is earned as intermediate margins are taken out. Therefore, IT engineers working for subcontractors and sub-subcontractors are forced to work for a smaller annual salary.
Long working hours
IT engineers often work overtime, and in some cases work long hours, to begin with. Especially highly skilled engineers may easily get caught up in projects that require them to work overtime to handle the workload.
Therefore, in some cases, even IT engineers with high annual salaries are actually earning more per year due to overtime work. Conversely, IT engineers who work little overtime will probably earn that much less per year.
Difficulty in skill development
The speed of technological innovation in the IT industry is rapid, and new technologies appear every day. Therefore, as an IT engineer, you need to improve your skills in order to handle the latest technologies.
However, because IT engineers are busy with their work, it is difficult for them to improve their skills at the same time as their work, so they need to be in an environment where they can study in some way, such as attending school or actively working on new projects.
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