Cost of living, yes, and if you’re a solid performer, 3% is considered good. However, this is a 5% across the board, and a large increase to entry level.
Cost of living in Japan has seriously spot up lately, and the government has been pressuring companies to raise salaries. So I’m glad to see Capcom doing this.
I used to work in private companies and any annual pay increase was whatever the union managed to negotiate for. It was usually between 1% - 3%. I quit after they moved the office to another city and required everyone to be at the office even though the people I worked with were in different countries. My current job is a government one and for as long as I have worked here I have gotten an annual raise of 10% - 20% and the working conditions are so much better. I'm never working in a private company again.
So an annual raise? I've got those at every job I have ever had. That's not some gracious thing. If you don't get an annual pay increase, or if your annual pay increase is less than the inflation rate, you are getting a pay decrease.