JAPAN: Dwindling Workforce Forces a Rethink on Role of Women Workers

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, May 16 2005 (IPS) - Faced with a rapidly ageing population and a dwindling workforce, Japanese companies seem to be pushing for reforms to woo more women workers. But activists contend this has not really ended their long battle to change the country’s male-dominated corporate culture, where there is still resistance to expanding women’s professional roles.

”It is true that female workers are being taken more seriously in Japan. However, they still have a long way to go before they can fulfil their dreams of being career women,” said Yoko Yamaguchi, at the international division of Japan’s largest trade union Rengo.

According to the United Nations, Japan’s population will decline from 127 million in 2004 to 109 million in 2050. Its fertility rate set a new record low of 1.32 in 2002 from 1.33 a year earlier. The percentage of those over 65 years old stood at 18.5 percent as of October 2002 and is expected to rise to 28.7 percent in 2025.

Because of these harsh realities, Japanese businesses are forced to employ more women and even send their female staff up the corporate ladder in order to avert a stagnated economy.

This is indeed a feat say activists – something which has been only been realised two decades after Japan ratified the U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 1985.

But some are sceptical over the actual changes happening now.

”Corporate commitment to closing the gender gap is based on combating Japan’s aging population, not on nurturing women’s talents. Changing this attitude is important for women workers,” said Nobuo Yamaguchi, chairperson of the Japan Chamber of Commerce.

By tradition Japanese companies hire men almost exclusively to fill career positions, reserving shorter-term work, mostly clerical tasks and tea serving, for women, who are widely known in such jobs here as office ladies, or simply O.L.’s.

Take the case of the much talked about changes at the Takashimaya Company that owns leading department stores across the country

As a step to shore-up support for its female workers, the company has now incorporated a system to increase the number of women floor managers but results have been poor up the corporate ladder.

Yoshio Murata, a manager at the Takashimaya Labour Union, told IPS women now comprise more than 40 percent of the managers in the sales section of its department stores, compared to less than 10 percent a few years ago.

”But at the corporate level, however, female numbers are almost negligible,” said Murata.

Nonetheless, said the unionist, they are slowly making gains. ”The move to increase women in responsible jobs, most of them in their twenties, is an important step to boost female labour standards because the step will allow women’s voices to be heard in the company.”

Still, whatever a woman’s qualifications, breaking into the career track requires overcoming entrenched biases, not least the feeling among managers that childbearing is an insupportable disruption. But that, too, seems to be changing.

Hitomi Nishihara, a labour analyst at Recruit Company, Japan’s leading employment firm, said more companies are starting new working shifts to help women stay in their jobs after marriage and child birth.

Based on the official government policy of developing working conditions that allow female workers to keep their jobs while starting a family at the same time, women can now work shorter hours after they have given birth. Also, some companies have set in place mechanisms whereby male bosses can keep in touch with their female staff on maternity leave so that they are kept up-to-date with working procedures and will be able to fit in almost immediately when they return to work.

”The big issue with corporations that refused to invest in their female labour force, was that women would quit after starting a family. But with the aging threat, companies are finally accepting the need to be flexible to women or face a shortage of workers,” explained Nishihara.

Some securities companies that have high numbers of women employees in their sales section have also stopped discriminative hiring – males for career vacancies and contract work for the women.

Said Yumiko Yagi, spokesperson for Nikko Cordial Securities, ”Starting in 2003, all new employees are hired as professional employees, a status that extends equal opportunities based on performance rather than gender.”

As well, Nikko offers women employees extra child care leave over the stipulated two years, and the opportunity to work at home through the Internet.

”With the increase in female clients in the stocks and shares business, we need more women workers for the company,” she explained.

”Now comes the important task of changing male conservative views of women workers. We must show them that investing in a working environment for women, actually brings more about more talent and profits for the company,” added Yagi.