Daijob Global Recruiting Co., Ltd. | Daijob Report

REPORT2013/07/30

An Investigation into the Effect of Language Ability on Annual Salary

As English ability goes up, so does the average salary. On average, a native speaker of English will earn 1.3 times more than someone who speaks no English. This report will make clear the present situation for job-seekers and the needs of employers with regards to English ability.

The operators of bilingual job board Daijob.com, Daijob Global Recruiting Co.,Ltd, have conducted an investigation among their registered users into the attributes, English ability and annual salary of those who have been scouted by companies on the website, as well as the English language needs and expected salaries given by employers. Using these results, we will examine what effect the rising demand of English ability has on looking for a new job.

◆　Attributes Targeted in this Investigation

Stat: 85% of users who were scouted possessed business conversation level, fluent or native English.
This data was taken from the 3,863 users who were sent scouting messages by companies from March to May 2013. Most users scouted were aged in their late 20s or 30s. The results showed that 85% of those scouted had business conversation level English or above.

◆　Result 1: The average salary of men and women in their 30s exceeds that shown in an investigation conducted by the Japanese National Tax Agency.

The age group which received the highest ratio of scout messages was people in their 30s. The average salary was \5,410,000 (Men: \6,150,000, Women: \4,670,000). There was a particularly striking difference between the average salaries of women observed in this investigation to the average shown in the report by the National Tax Agency.

◆　Result 2: The average salary was higher in around 80% of industries when compared to the investigation conducted by the Japanese National Tax Agency.

In five industries (Manufacturing, Credit/Insurance, Transportation/Posting, Service, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries/Mining), there was a remarkable disparity between the average salary of those scouted by companies and the average salary reported by the National Tax Agency.

◆　Result 3: The average salary of those in their 30s goes up proportionately with English ability.

The average salary of a native English speaker was seen to be 1.3 times higher than that of somebody with no English ability. In real terms, this equates to a difference of around \1,300,000.

◆　Result 4: The expected salary given by employers exceeded the current salary of Daijob.com users.

In 70% of industries, job advertisements which noted a requirement of business conversation level English or above also noted an average expected salary higher than the average current salary of Daijob.com users. One reason for this would be the lack of people with experience in a particular industry or occupation as well as an English ability of business conversation level or above, which would lead to a rise in expected salary. It is widely considered that this trend is likely to continue as Japan undergoes the process of globalization.

BACK TO INDEX