LONG-TERM CHANGES OF INCOME DISTRIBUTION IN JAPAN, 1890–1995

Abstract

This article considers changes in income distribution in Japan over the past century. Gini coefficients are calculated, based on reliable family income surveys for the post-1962 period. Family budget surveys are used for some occupational groups to obtain coefficients for the early post-war period 1946–62. Because of the scarcity of data before 1945, fragmented information such as surveys on wages and data on local taxes have been collected to infer trends in degrees of inequality. We find a regressive trend before 1960 if we neglect the sharp decline of coefficients in the 1940s owing to reform of the socio-economic system promoted by the Allied Occupation Forces. Progressive changes are found from 1960 to 1990, relating to the shift in the Japanese economy from labour surplus to labour scarcity.