A worker checks machinery at a factory in Higashiosaka, Japan June 23, 2022. REUTERS/Sakura Murakami

TOKYO (Reuters) -A Japanese labour union group representing major manufacturers said on Wednesday that it would seek an increase of at least 12,000 yen ($77) in monthly base pay for next year, the same target as this year.

The Japan Council of Metalworkers' Unions (JCM) is considered a pace-setter for annual wage negotiations and represents about 2 million workers for blue-chip companies including Toyota Motor and Nippon Steel.

The increase in base pay, which excludes seniority-based annual hikes already built into the pay scale, is crucial to Japan's stated goal of achieving sustainable wage growth exceeding the pace of inflation.

Japan's largest labour union group, Rengo, of which JCM is a member, is seeking an overall increase in wages of at least 5% in 2026, including a rise in the base pay of at least 3%.

According to Rengo, its member unions secured an average pay rise of 5.25% this year, the biggest hike in 34 years.

($1 = 156.3800 yen)

(Reporting by Kentaro Sugiyama and Makiko Yamazaki; Writing by Leika Kihara; Editing by Conor Humphries)