How Japan's #KuToo fights pressure to wear high heels "Yumi Ishikawa became the leader of a movement after tweeting about the pain from the heels she had to wear to work". In this video, she talks about how the movement came into being and ends by saying there is so much discrimination in in society, especially in Japan, and much is not solved because people are unaware of it so she wants people to notice these things. (Japanese video with English subtitles). BBC Worklife 101, 31 Jul 2019.
‘Only Women Know How To Vacuum’ And Other Stories Of Workplace Sexism In Japan Two Women Share Gender Inequality Workplace Experiences In Japan. Savvy Tokyo, 1 Mar 2018.
‘I was unashamed’: Yumi Ishikawa on fighting sexism in Japan Her viral tweet against the mandatory wearing of high heels at work fuelled the #KuToo movement. Financial Times, 5 Dec 2019.
OLとしてのキャリア、母としての幸せ。両立は難しい？ 産休・育休のキビシイ現実 A survey article with very short stories about women's experiences of being a mom and an office lady at the same time.
育休復帰ママに「やめスイッチ」が入る瞬間 Stories about women who just simply give up their career, which is thought to be usual in Japan. Toyo-keizai online, 15 Apr 2015.
Why Japan's Women Problem Is Hard to Fix This video looks at what Abe's Womenomics has achieved and many areas where women still face inequality. Blooomberg, 20 Sep 2018.
Analysis: women across Japan far behind in gender equality "Women’s participation is still low across many of Japan's 47 prefectures, particularly in politics and management, while pay equality also continues lagging...The results showed women were particularly underrepresented in politics nationwide, accounting for 10.6 percent of all prefectural assembly members." Asahi Shimbun, 8 Mar, 2022.
Pandemic worsens all-too-familiar challenges for women in Japan "Japan ranked 120th out of 156 countries in the World Economic Forum’s gender gap ranking in 2021, remaining in last place among advanced economies, due to particularly low scores in the political and economic arenas. And government data has shown that, as with other countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it harder for women in Japan — who have already been at a disadvantage compared with men — to participate in the workforce". japan Times, 7 Mar 2022.
Women's working hours underscore gender disparity in Japan: Burden of overtime and job transfers dissuade women from full-time employment This article explains that women's participation in the workforce (the number of women working) in Japan has increased and is now above the OECD average but the difference in working hours between men and women shows that women are in irregular, temporary jobs much more than men. Nikkei Asia, 20 Jan 2022.
Expert says Japanese leaders aren't doing enough for gender equality A recent ranking of countries based on the quality of work environment for women placed Japan second to last. One expert says this should come as no surprise and that the country must embrace a more comprehensive understanding of "gender equality." NHK World, 10 Mar 2021.
The Failed Promise of Workplace Equality in Japan: A View from the Trenches "overall conditions have improved little for Japanese working women, most of whom labor in low-paying part-time or temporary jobs." Economist Shutō Wakana explains the situation of women in irregular part-time and temporary work , the effect of the pandemic on them, and the need for government action to improve women’s working conditions in the post-pandemic era, especially shortages in the healthcare and childcare industries. nippon.com, 14 Jan 2021.
Women in the Workforce: Japan (Quick Take) A useful statistical overview of women's position in work including women's particpation in the labour force, in leadership positions, the gender pay gap, and challenges facing working mothers. Catalyst, Nov 24, 2020.
White Paper on Gender Equality 2020 - Summary The Japanese Government's position on gender equality including lots of useful data about different aspects of gender equality. It starts with a special feature on Balancing "Work" and "Housework/Childcare/Caregiving"and includes the following chapters: Chapter 1. Women’s Participation in Policy Decision-making Processes; Chapter 2. Gender Equality in the Workplace; Chapter 3. Gender Equality in Regions, Rural Districts, Disaster Prevention, and Reconstruction; Chapter 4. Gender Equality in Education and Research; Chapter 5. Status of Women and Men’s Lifelong Health and Elderly People; Chapter 6. Violence Against Women. Downlaods as a pdf file. Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office.
Data on Japan from the Global Gender Gap Report 2020. World Economic Forum.
Japan’s gender gap: A lack of gender equality in career opportunity and long work hours perpetuate wage differences between men and women This article gives an explanation of Japan's low gender ranking on the Global Gender Gap report in terms of unequal pay caused by the high levels of women in part-time work, the lack of females leaders in business and traditional attitudes. International Monetary Fund, Mar 2019.
Sexual harassment policies unchanged at most firms in Japan, despite growing awareness amid global Me Too movement: poll "Three-quarters of Japanese companies have made no changes to sexual harassment policies over the last year and don’t plan to do so, a recent poll found, though awareness of harassment is on the rise." Japan Times, 25 May 2018.
Japanese Government Gender Equality Bureau / 内閣府男女共同参画局 Has information on the situation of gender (in)equality in Japan and government policies such as the report on Women and Men in Japan 2018 (downloads as pdf files) including Work and The Act on Promotion of Women's Participation and Advancement in the Workplace
Japan extends female hiring targets to midsize enterprises This article looks at how many large, medium and small companies have created action plans for gender equality. Medium and small companies make up the large majority of businesses in Japan but very few have taken action on gender equality. Nikkei Asian Review, June 08, 2018.
Is womenomics improving Japanese working women’s lives? An articles that considers many aspects of the current situation for working women in Japan. East Asia Forum, 28 Sep 2018.
What Is Womenomics, and Is It Working for Japan? This article says that progress on improving women's situation in the workplace (and politics) has been very slow and looks at entrenched view in Japan to explain this. Bloomberg, September 20, 2018
Japan’s culture of discrimination saps ‘womenomics’ Shinzo Abe’s female empowerment policy seen largely as push for more and cheaper workers. This article looks at the arguments that Abe's Womenomics policy is less about achieveing gender equality and more about filling Japan's labour shortages with women workers. Finacial Times, August 29, 2018
The Journey to Inclusion: Building Workplaces That Work for Women in Japan (Report) A quite short report you can download as a pdf file looking at inclusion for proefesisonal women in companies, including why there is a lack of inclusion, why diversity is improtant and what can be done to improve women7s inclusion. Japanese version. 日本語版Catalyst, Oct 17, 2017.
Lessons from the Rise of Women’s Labor Force Participation in Japan A report that looks at the increase in women's economic participation in Japan, at demographic and policy reasons for this increase, and at the experiences of women in the Japanese workforce compared to women in the USA. The Hamilton Project, 1 Nov 2017.
Japan’s convenience stores and fast-food restaurants are competing to hire “hardworking housewives” Quartz, 7 Sep 2017.
Shadow Report on the Situation of Working Women submitted to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women by the Working Women's Network, a Japanese NGO. It looks at unequal pay and promotion policies, and gaps in the laws against gender discrimination in Japan, as well sexual harassment and maternity harassment in the workplace, 4 Jan, 2016.
Japanese Women Face Tough Reality in Work and Marriage This article looks at two reasons for the gender gap at work in Japan, traditional ideas about the role of husband and wife and corporate discrimination, as well as at gender participation in the workforce, unequal pay, and changing attitudes to marriage. Nippon.com 20 Aug 2015
Japan: Women in the workforce This article looks at the participation rate of women in the Japanese economy and Prime Minister Abe's plans to increase that, as well as at the gender pay gap. Financial Times, 7 Jul 2015
Working Women in Japan: Low-Status Jobs, Lack of Opportunities, Wasted Education, Few Female Executives A website that looks at various aspects of gender inequality in Japan, updated Jan 2014.
Closing the Gender Gap in Japan 'Closing the Gender Gap in Japan draws on surveys of large Japanese companies to identify the measures needed to make the most of female talent'. A World Economic Forum Report, June 2014.
More companies set action plans to boost women in management The number of Keidanren's member companies that have set up their own action plans for the promotion of female workers has risen to 365, but only a small fraction of those firms have set a target of at least 30 percent, The Japan Times, 10 Dec, 2014.
Seizing the initiative for women at work A number of large domestic companies are already working toward realistic empowerment targets for women in their workforce. Japan Times, 22 Nov 2014.
Women's group aims to narrow wage gap The Working Women's Network (WWN), a group of female workers in Osaka, is putting together a report on sexual discrimination in the workplace for the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The report looks at reasons for women in Japan earning only 66.9% of men's wages on average, especially a discriminatory dual track career system that keeps women out of managerial positions, and argues for a law to guarantee equal pay. Japan Times, Oct. 4, 2008. Read Alternative Report Presented by Working Women’s Network ( Japan ) to The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Working Women‟s Network, June 2009, here.
Japan Struggles With Women in the Workforce Japan has one of the largest gender gaps in the world. What can it do to fix it? The Diplomat,10 Dec, 2013.
Changing Corporate Culture Key to Closing Japan’s Gender Gap A summary of the report on Closing the Gender Gap in Japan, World Economic Forum.
Are Women Really Shining in Japan? Compares the gender gap in Japan with the situation in China and Korea. World Economic Forum, 17July 2014.
Five ways to finally close the gender gap in Japan An article that identifies the three main areas of gender equality in which Japan is falling behind and five ways to improve the situation. World Economic Forum, 5 Jun, 2014
Japan: The worst developed country for working mothers? This article discusses reasons why returning to work is so difficult for Japanese mothers and looks at economist Kathy Matsui's arguments about the economic need for Japan to enable more women to enter the workforce. BBC News, 22 Mar 2013.
Japan Cries Out for Daycare Tokyo makes the childcare shortage worse by trying too hard to fix it. Wall Street Journal, 7 Aug 2013.
Maternity leave, day care still elude many working mothers Working moms face high hurdles in efforts to return to workplace. Japan Times, 18 Jun 2013.
Working Women in Japan: Low-Status Jobs, Lack of Opportunities, Wasted Education, Few Female Executives A website that looks at various aspects of gender inequality in Japan, updated Jan 2014.
Japanese women hold record 3% of senior government posts Japanese women held a record-high ratio of senior positions in the central government, but at 3 percent, they are still well behind their counterparts in other developed nations, government figures showed Jan. 31. Asahi Shimbun, 1 Feb 2014.
Foreign women also face ‘maternity harassment’: Laws protect working women before and after childbirth but awareness is far from universal This article looks at “maternity harassment,” which refers to discrimination in the workplace against women who are pregnant, on child-care leave or have returned to work after giving birth, mainly against foreign women in Japan.
An International Comparison of Gender Equality: Why Is the Japanese Gender Gap So Persistent? by Margarita Estévez-Abe. This article discusses institutional conditions that promote gender quality in the market place, and shows those conditions are largely lacking in Japan.It considers policies that help women balance motherhood and work in Scandinavian countries and also looks at four other factors in gender equality. Japan Labour Review, Spring 2010.
Gender Wage Gap A chart comparing OECD countries. OECD, 2022.
Global Gender Gap Report 2021 from World Economic Forum, including Key Findings. Download the pdf of the full report to find tables with the overall ranking for different countries and the ranking in different aspects of gender equality. You can also search the Data Explorer to find data on different regions and individuals countries for the 2020 report.
Catalyst is a global nonprofit supported by many of the world’s most powerful CEOs and leading companies to help build workplaces that work for women. It has infortion on a range of issues such as sexual harrassment, women CEOs, LGBTIQ inclusion and engaging men in creating gender equality, and you can search each issue by region including for Japan.
Gender Inequality and Women in the Workplace In the following Q&A, Mary Brinton—sociology professor at Harvard University—answered a few questions about how the United States compares to other postindustrial countries (especially Japan) on gender inequality, as well as how gender equality can help solve declining birth rates. Harvard Summer School
Gender Pay Gap This article suggests a range of sources (causes) of the gender pay gap, looks at its impact and some policies to change it, presents an overview of OECD countries, and discusses the situation in a number of different countries including Japan. On Japan, it reports the argument that Abenomics is more about addressing the problems of aging society than achieving gender equality and that more women are entering the Japanese workforce but in worse positions than men (as part-time workers, for example) so the requirements of Japanese companies have more effect than government policies. Wikipedia.
International Approaches to Closing the Gender Wage Gap By Kaitlin Holmes and Danielle Corley Looks at causes of the gender pay gap, the need for policy solutions and some policies being tried in different countries. It explains that not rewarding equal pay for equal work and the gender wage gap are distinct issues that require different solutions. And it argues that the drivers or causes of the gender wage gap within countries as well as variation between countries are mainly differences in minimum wage laws and the extent of collectively bargained wages (wages negotiated between trade unions and employers). Center for American Progress, 4 Apr, 2017.
The real reasons for the gender pay gap By Oliver Staley This article looks mainly at the US and professional work. It argues that when similar jobs in similar companies are compared, the gender gap is very small so the cause of the overall gender gap is the fact that women go into different, less-well paid jobs, to men or are promoted less. Quartz at Work, 11 April 2018.
An International Comparison of Gender Equality: Why Is the Japanese Gender Gap So Persistent? By Margarita Estévez-Abe When it comes to gender equality, Japan lags behind other advanced countries despite the introduction of Equal Employment Opportunity Act in 1985. This article discusses institutional conditions that promote gender quality in the market place, and shows those conditionsare largely lacking in Japan....This article argues that mother-friendly policies are not the only factors that explain the relative economic position of men and women. It uses the US and Spain in order to highlight different institutional scenarios to promote gender equality. Japan Labour Review, 2013.
Gender Equality in Employment Section III of the OECD publication, Closing the Gender Gap: Act Now. This is a complicated and detailed report but has some really useful information of gender gaps at work as well possible causes of these and policies for changing this. Includes:
Chapter 11 Who is in paid work? (p5/149);
Chapter 12 Does motherhood mean part-time work? (p15/159);
Chapter 13 A women's worth (p21/165);
Chapter 14 The business case for women and addressing the leaky pipeline (p31/175); Chapter 15 Women on boards (p39/183);
Chapter 16 Gender divides in the public domain (p47/191); Chapter 17 Who cares? (p55/199);
Chapter 18 Supporting parents in juggling work and family life (p61/205);
Chapter 19 male and female employment in the aftermath of the crisis (p71/215);
Chapter 20 The hidden workers: Women in informal employment (p77/221);
Chapter 21 Women in retirement (p85/229)
Gender differences in employment and why they matter Chapter 5 of the World Bank's World Development Report, 2012. A long, quite difficult report but ti has lots of useful analysis of gender inequality in the economy and many interesting charts and graphs.
Working Women's Network English page for a Japanese organisation. Japanese version: ワーキングウィメンズネットワーク