What needs to happen to improve

Japan has been facing recession for over two decades now. Because of the Japanese corporate culture, women are forced to choose either the family or her career. It shouldn’t be that way but it is nearly impossible for a woman (or a man) to raise children while working for a Japanese company. Japanese employees are expected to work very hard very late often and going for drinks with your boss or client is routine. That’s how you can advance your career in the system.

On top of that, Japanese companies still practice the life time employment system, meaning their hiring managers try to recruit new grads who don’t have any experiences. That’s especially the case for a large cooperation such as Sony, Panasonic…and employees are expected to stay with the company until they retire at the age of 65.

This system works if you are a man graduated from a reputable University..then sure, he is in a good place. He will be exhausted on some days but he will get used to it. The companies hire women also but they are usually in their 20s and early 30s. In Japan, pretty much mid 30 is the age limit for work. It is more rigid for women but still isn’t it pathetic? 30 years old can still go back to school and start over if that’s what the person wants to do. But the reality is so much harder for Japanese women.

Japanese government is trying to do something about low birth rates and lack of labors because of the population decline so they have to come up with a plan that helps two conflicting issues. Japanese women generally want to retire from work and be a stay at home mom once she becomes a mother. Japan needs women to continue to reproduce yet they also need to stay in their work force, But with the way things are, it is not fair to the women.