In "My Oyatto!", we invite people active in various fields as commentators to dig deep into interesting news and events.
This time, we have journalist Koichiro Sakai.

The theme is "Analysis! Kagoshima Annual Salary Ranking."
SalesNow, which has a database of 5.4 million companies in Japan, has compiled and analyzed the average annual salary data of listed companies headquartered in Kagoshima Prefecture and released it as an "average annual salary ranking."
This time, we will analyze the characteristics and commonalities of Kagoshima companies that appeared at the top of the ranking.
The data was extracted in ranking form based on public data from the tax office and information released by government agencies and companies.
(The figures may differ from the annual salary announced by the companies themselves.)
The top 12 listed companies in Kagoshima Prefecture have been announced, with Kyushu Financial Group coming in at number 1 by a long way with an annual salary of 9.52 million yen, and Minami-Nippon Bank, Shin Nippon Kagaku, and Softmax coming in at 5 million yen.
Softmax, which is in 4th place, is a company with its head office in Kagoshima City that mainly provides comprehensive medical information systems such as medical accounting and electronic medical records.

Kyushu Financial Group is a holding company with 22 subsidiaries, including Kagoshima Bank.
Minami-Nippon Bank is a second-tier regional bank with 64 branches, mainly in Kagoshima Prefecture.
Financial institutions are also ranked high in Oita Prefecture and Miyazaki Prefecture.
The top companies with high annual salaries are characterized by having the world's most cutting-edge technology.
Shin Nippon Kagaku, which is in 3rd place, is a company that develops pharmaceuticals, and has recently been in the news that it has developed a nasal medication to treat migraines and has received sales approval in the United States, which has become a hot topic.
Marumae, which is in 8th place, is a company with its head office in Izumi City, and is currently the most popular manufacturer of precision parts for semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
It is known as a company that makes the parts that are the heart of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, but it also makes advanced parts for medical equipment and industrial robots.
Aside from technology, another characteristic of Kagoshima is that many of the companies contribute to society.
Ranked 9th is Misumi, a lifestyle general company that also operates a large bookstore called Books Misumi.
Their main business is energy, such as gas stations, but as we have previously covered in this program, they are also involved in small hydroelectric power plants that use water from rivers and agricultural canals, contributing to the creation of a sustainable Kagoshima.
When we looked at the companies with the highest annual income, we found that they all had one thing in common: they are "employee-friendly companies."
In addition to Shin Nippon Kagaku and Misumi, Higashimaru, ranked 11th, has been certified as a "Health and Productivity Management Excellent Corporation 2025" for its commitment to employee health.
Located in Hioki City, Higashimaru is a company that manufactures and sells dried noodles and compound feed for aquaculture.
They are committed to health and productivity management, such as by having 100% of their employees take childcare leave, not just women.
As is the case with Shin Nippon Kagaku. Softmax, ranked 4th, has made both the "Kagoshima Marriage and Childcare Support Declaration" and the "Women's Active Participation Promotion Declaration," and is promoting itself as a company that supports childcare.

Some companies are able to contribute to society because of their large sales and profits.

Companies in Kagoshima Prefecture have a hard time even raising wages.

There is a survey on wage increase rates conducted by Kagoshima Bank and Kyushu Economic Research Institute, which received responses from 336 companies in Kagoshima Prefecture.

Only 16% of companies in the prefecture were able to raise wages by "5% or more," which was the target set by the Rengo in fiscal 2024.

Including companies that did not implement the plan, one-third of companies raised wages by "less than 2%."

However, according to SalesNow's calculations of the average annual salary by employee size of listed companies nationwide, it is true that the average annual salary of large companies with 1,001 or more employees is high, but if you look closely, you can see that the highest average annual salary is a small company with 1 to 10 employees, and a company with 11 to 30 employees is third highest.
Companies that provide high-value-added products and services are ranked high in annual income, regardless of company size.
For more information, please watch the video.

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