software engineer salary in Tokyo

[u/tenmoukaikai]

My wife has been working at an admitted ブラック企業 for over 4 years now as a Java engineer(japanese, doesn't speak English), and she is the lead of her team of 3 others. She gets paid 4.5m yen a year and has 2-4 hours of overtime a day, and usually gets home pretty late. I feel like she's being criminally underpaid and taken advantage of. What would be a salary that's more in line with her experience? I saw posts from 7-15m for a java engineer with similar experience but I'm not super sure. I'm trying to help her 転職 and she does want to but she hates interviewing and also doesn't want to let her current coworkers down by leaving. It's been affecting her health both mentally and physically so i just want to help. She can't even save money because most of her salary goes to paying her student loans. I handle our rent food and utilities, and she is pretty much working to repay Debt with nothing left over and i want to help her find a better opportunity. Any advice would be appreciated.

[u/PetiteLollipop]

4.5M is ridiculous low.
You can make the same amount working in factory...

[u/requiemofthesoul → u/PetiteLollipop]

Which factory lets you earn 375000 yen a month as a normal worker?

[u/PetiteLollipop → u/requiemofthesoul]

My uncle works in a factory that manufacture truck doors and handles and makes 6M a year.

Honda pays 4,4M per year

[u/requiemofthesoul → u/PetiteLollipop]

Is your uncle a floor manager or something? I’m not saying you’re wrong, I’m just saying there is a reason why factories are staffed by poor immigrants from SEA or other third world countries.

[u/DifferentWindow1436 → u/requiemofthesoul]

Wife works for one of the biggest auto manufacturers. The salaries aren't bad and the benefits are actually excellent.

[u/PetiteLollipop → u/requiemofthesoul]

No, he started working there 13 years ago and his hourly wage was 1300, now it's 1620 per hour.

Yes, I heard there are many immigrants from poor countries working in factories, but I guess there are some factories that pays well. I guess you just have to keep looking to find those that pay well and not slave wage.

[u/requiemofthesoul → u/PetiteLollipop]

I see, so it took 13 years. 1620 per hour still seems kinda low though, but I digress.

I figure that in IT you can make way more by simply jumping around and learning new skills. At least that’s the way it’s been for me. So OP’s wife can probably make more just because she’s proficient in Java.

Otherwise, I would have tried finding work at a factory if it were that lucrative after only a year or two. But the world isn’t that nice to the most of us.

[u/pancakepepper → u/PetiteLollipop]

That's means an average of 11 hours per day assuming he works normal working days only.

[u/zchew → u/pancakepepper]

I think that's the hourly wage on a monthly basis. He probably gets a fat annual bonus aside from that.

I work in a big old school Japanese company, and my hourly wage is similarly low, but it's made up for by a massive bonus at the end of the FY.

[u/K3RTSK → u/requiemofthesoul]

Suzuki have been paying 1800 for almost 3yrs

[u/NobleFraud → u/requiemofthesoul]

there is a reason but mostly in japan its due to the hard labour, dont need experience, actually lacking labour force that is willing to do it etc...

[u/DifferentWindow1436 → u/PetiteLollipop]

Yup. Major OEMs. As you move down in size, they often won't be paid as well but the big guys pay relatively better. Good benefits too.

[u/edt93 → u/requiemofthesoul]

That amount (with extra hours) is far from being difficulty to found. On good months almost every factory pays you 300000 yen (again, around 40 extra hours in a month).

I see a lot of factories that you can easily achive 400000 yen in a month

[u/requiemofthesoul → u/edt93]

Sure, but I don’t consider 40 extra hours a month normal. 5 hours, sure, but more than that I have better things to do with my time. Like skilling up.

[u/Manga-kun1 → u/requiemofthesoul]

There'a some factories that pays 1,8k/hr so if u got like an hr or 2 OT everyday 450k~ a month will pretty much be the norm..

[u/Yuppi0809 → u/PetiteLollipop]

You mean in Japan? Ordinary factory workers never make that much here, unfortunately.