Overtime in the domestic manufacturing sector fell 8.5 percent from the previous year to an average of 12.6 hours a month in 2001, according to a government survey released Thursday.

The decline, the first in three years, reflected slack consumer spending and stagnant plant and equipment investment, according to the survey carried out by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry on 33,000 business offices with five employees or more.

On an all-industry basis, overtime work came to 9.4 hours a month, down 4.4 percent, marking the first decline in two years, the ministry said.

The sharpest drop was recorded in the information technology sector, where overtime plunged 19.1 percent to 13.1 hours due to sluggish demand worldwide, the ministry said.

Average working hours for all sectors fell to 1,837 hours in 2001, down 16 hours from the previous year.

For offices with 30 workers or more, annual average working hours fell to 1,849, down 10 hours from the previous year.

The finding will make it more likely that the government will achieve its goal of reducing yearly working hours to 1,800 in fiscal 2005. The government adopted the target in its welfare policy to reduce the stress on Japan's army of corporate workers. The goal has become feasible only because of the nation's decade-long economic slump.

As the economic decline continues, the so-called work-sharing system is being considered in several industrial sectors. This is expected to push down average working hours further.

Monthly wages averaged 351,347 yen in 2001 at offices with five workers or more, down 1.2 percent from the previous year, the report says.