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The story
A thread on 5ch’s News VIP board asked, “If you’re a college graduate who still isn’t making 6 million yen a year (roughly the average income for men), why are you still doing that job?” — and it drew a flood of responses. Many posters pointed to civil servant pay scales by rank, Self-Defense Force salary data, and job listings from the food service and nursing care industries to argue that “6 million is achievable anywhere.” Others pushed back with statistics like “even 5 million yen doesn’t put you in the top 1%” and “the average annual salary for full-time restaurant workers is only 3.3–3.69 million yen,” splitting opinion over which numbers to trust.
What people said
(Probably some NEET who doesn't know how the real world works, so they can't even calibrate their trolling right.)
That's not true.
These days even new grads pull in almost 5 million yen.
This guy's talking about numbers that don't even crack the top 1%, like it's totally normal.
Even civil servants make this much:
Sample salaries by rank
Staff member (age 22): ¥4.908 million
Senior staff (age 30): ¥5.853 million
Assistant section chief (age 40): ¥7.843 million
Section chief (age 50): ¥11.706 million
Department head: ¥13.997 million
Bureau chief: ¥19.269 million
"Civil servant" doesn't mean much though — this is a country where everyone who actually helps you at the ward office is a non-permanent contract worker.
You're making less than a high school grad in the Self-Defense Forces.
You should really realize that "normal" isn't as normal as you think.
Even a high school grad SDF member — who couldn't score anywhere near 40% on the Center Exam — makes this much
(Still me from Re: #11)
Everyone's a college grad these days anyway.
Even a high school grad SDF member makes this much
(Same point as Re: #11)
If we're talking "doesn't even crack the top 1%," it's about this level
New grads making 5 million is actually pretty normal
Even retail jobs out in the countryside pay like this
For example, average out 3 million, 3.5 million, 4 million, 4.5 million, and 15 million yen, and you get 6 million as the average.
Compare it using full-time male college-grad employees only.
Honestly, in this day and age, you'd have to be an idiot to work somewhere that hasn't raised wages.
You're making less than a high school grad in the Self-Defense Forces.
A 5 million yen salary is top 1%???? lol
You'll hit 5 million in a few years no matter what job you're doing, right?
Manufacturing? Like what, specifically?
Are you thinking of jobs like temp factory contract work, where experience never accumulates and staff keep getting rotated out?
Even caregivers who stay full-time for 10 years become assistant facility directors and easily clear 5 million.
If you job-hop around without building a career, sure, that'd be tough.
Why don't you post your own work history.
Wait, how does "everyone becomes an assistant facility director" connect to "job-hopping without building a career"?
Go tell that to Re: #44.
Looks like even temp factory contract workers hit 5.6 million.
That job comes with forced relocations though 😭
Normally you'd use the National Tax Agency's Survey on Private Sector Salaries, I'd think.
Honestly, I've never seen anyone base this on anything else.
Including the numbers from every job listing you've been posting —
it's hard to believe they're all under the same conditions.
Arguing over the figures on that basis doesn't mean much.
That's the point I'm making — don't you get it?
What are you even talking about?
Read the thread title.
The point is "what's with people working jobs that don't even hit 6 million?"
I'm just saying even food service gets there.
AI-generated summary:
The average annual salary for full-time employees in the food service industry (accommodation and food services) is roughly 3.3 million to 3.69 million yen overall.
Huh? What's wrong?
Not gonna mindlessly repost Re: #76 again?
Something about it bothering you?
My bad, lol.
Go ahead and bring up somewhere that doesn't clear it.
It clears it everywhere.
Even in food service.
Then isn't it weird that the average salary sits around 6 million yen?
If it clears it everywhere, why is the average right around 6 million?
Go say that to Re: #70 and whoever else is claiming it clears it everywhere.
Background and Key Points of This Debate
According to the National Tax Agency’s Survey on Private Sector Salaries, the average annual income across all salaried workers sits in the low ¥4 million range, which puts the ¥6 million benchmark closer to what full-time male employees or mid-career civil servants earn. In the thread, posters leaned heavily on civil servant pay tables by rank, Self-Defense Force salary figures, and income numbers pulled from individual job listings to argue that “6 million is within reach anywhere” — but listed job-ad salaries, bonus-inclusive averages, and averages across all full-time employees rest on different premises and can’t simply be lined up and compared. Likewise, the claims that “5 million yen doesn’t even crack the top 1%” and “even new grads make almost 5 million” may be drawing on different surveys or different age brackets, and many of the posts cite no source at all — something readers should keep in mind.
※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (News VIP) thread “If you’re a college grad still not making 6 million yen a year (roughly the average for men), why are you still doing that job?.”
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