Public pay in Japan is cut

Japan will slash civil servants' salaries by five to 10 per cent to help pay for the reconstruction of areas devastated by the March earthquake and tsunami.

The measure, adopted by Japan's cabinet but still requiring parliamentary approval, would affect most of the central government's 543,000 employees, an official at the Ministry of Internal Affairs said, although members of the military would be exempt for the first six months.

Japanese media estimated the cuts would save about $3.58 billion a year from government spending. The bill proposes cutting cabinet ministers' salaries by 20 per cent.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who was paid $25,465 per month as of January, had already said he would forego a portion of his salary from June.

Related topics: