On February 26, 2026, Mazda Motor Corp., Mitsubishi Motors Corp., and Yamaha Motor Co. fully met their unions' demands for monthly wage and annual bonus hikes in this year's shunto spring labor negotiations. The companies will raise monthly wages by ¥19,000, ¥18,000, and ¥19,400 respectively, with bonuses equivalent to 5.1, 5.0, and 5.3 months' pay.
In Japan's shunto spring labor-management negotiations this year, some automakers have fully accepted their unions' demands for increases in monthly wages and annual bonuses. Mazda Motor Corp. notified its labor union on Wednesday, February 26, 2026, of its decision to provide pay-scale and regular increases totaling ¥19,000 a month. Mitsubishi Motors Corp. agreed the same day to a ¥18,000 monthly wage hike. Yamaha Motor Co., a major motorcycle manufacturer, also accepted a ¥19,400 monthly salary increase on that day.
The three companies plan to offer annual bonuses equivalent to 5.1 months' pay for Mazda, 5.0 months for Mitsubishi Motors, and 5.3 months for Yamaha Motor. They responded well ahead of March 18, when many major Japanese firms are expected to present their wage plans in the 2026 shunto negotiations. This appears aimed at sustaining wage hike momentum amid a challenging business environment, partly due to the high tariff policy of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.
Mazda has fully met the union's wage demand for the fifth consecutive year, marking the largest monthly increase since adopting its current personnel system in 2003. Hit by U.S. tariff measures, the company reported a consolidated net loss for April-December 2025. Mazda's Chief Human Resource Officer Tomiko Takeuchi stated that the labor cost increase will be significant, but added, “We need to demonstrate our determination for the future and trust in our employees.”
Yamaha Motor also agreed to a one-day increase in annual paid holidays, the first such rise since 1993. The automobile industry is believed to have fewer annual holidays than other sectors, and the Confederation of Japan Automobile Workers’ Unions, which includes Yamaha Motor's union, is working to increase them.
These agreements come as attention focuses on wage trends in the automotive sector.
