See also:
New link added 10 June 2020 女性のライフイベントfrom Waffle –Power point resource about women’s life events & careers.
New link added 2 May 2020 Gender parity in parenting "The challenge to social norms triggered by the free fall in Japan's birth rate has recently opened the door a crack in the political realm. A few male politicians wanting more time with their children are calling for flexible gender roles that allow men to take parental leave too." The article focuses on childcare leave for politicians. NHK World, 16 Jan, 2020.
New link added 2 May 2020 Two Men in Japan Dared to Take Paternity Leave. It Cost Them Dearly, They Say. On paper, Japan has one of the best paternity leave policies in the world. In practice, very few men — less than one in 16 — take advantage of their legal right, often because they fear retribution. Now two men in Japan who did take time off to care for newborns are suing their employers, saying the companies punished them with demotions and pay cuts after they returned from paternity leave. New York Times, 12 Sep 2019.
New link added 2 May 2020 Unprecedented cases highlight Japan’s paternity leave issues Another article about the case of Glen Hill, who claims he suffered pata-hara. It includes analysis by Professor Makoto Yoshida who argues it wil tke decades for paternity to become common in japan because of Japanese corporate culture. Asahi Shimbun, 9 Sep 2019
New link added 2 May 2020 Brokerage worker loses paternity leave appeal in Japan A Japanese court on Friday rejected a request by a former brokerage manager to get his job back after he took paternity leave at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley. The case of Glen Wood, a Canadian who has lived in Japan for three decades, has become a symbol of the fight against what is called "paternity harassment," or "pata hara." Mainichi Japan, 3 Apr 2020.
Fired for Having a Baby: Victims of Maternity Harassment in Japan Speak Out Also looks at how men wanting to take paternity leave face discrimination. Tokyo Weekender, 7 Sep 2018.
Matahara: An Issue with a Larger Context This article explains maternity harassment, the campaign against it and the larger context of demographics, economics, and quality of Life. Diplomatic Courier, 20 Aug 2015.
Ladies & The Law: Battling The Invisible Enemy Behind Every Maternity Harassment Case A sign of employer inflexibility that needs to be addressed. Savvy Tokyo, 30 Mar 2019.
Japan’s mothers go back to work, but find the opportunities lacking New York Times) 28 Sep 2018.
Moms continue to face hurdles returning to work as Abe wavers on day care and women's empowerment goals Japan Times, Oct 4, 2018
Working Mothers In Japan: The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same This article looks at a range of issues that affect working mothers including childcare facilities, support from men with chidcare and the tax system. Savvy Tokyo, Aug 27, 2018.
In Japan, working mothers battle overwork culture PRI August 24, 2018
Career moms in Japan face systemic barriers that in turn hurt the nation Women limited in return to work due to lack of daycare space — a GDP opportunity cost of 13. Financial Post, 8 Oct 2018.
Career Interruption of Japanese Women: Why Is It So Hard to Balance Work and Childcare? Yanfei Zhou, The Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training, 2015. (Downloads as a pdf file)
Report on Women and Men in Japan 2018 from the government's Gender Equality Bureau. Includes information on Work-life Balance and Public Procurement for Evaluating Corporations that Promote Measures such as Work-life Balance to Encourage the Advancement of Women (both downloads as a pdf file) and on the government's gender equality policies.
顕在化してきた「パタニティ・ハラスメント Paternity Harassment being actualized, マナビズ, 19 Apr 2017,
パタニティ・ハラスメント（パタハラ）に関する調査 The survey of Paternity Leave, 日本労働組合総連合会, 23 Jan 2014, Written about the legal rights, situations of raising children, the way to keep a best balance between the job and family.
男性育休でパタハラ。「古い職場」で、現場からの働き方改革を続ける会社員のリアル, HUFFPOST, 11 Jan 2018,
男性の育児休暇取得に9割が賛成するも、同僚が取得したら「迷惑」」people support the paternity leave system, while they feel bad with the coworker taking it, マイナビニュース, 10 Mar 2014,
男性の育児休業取得はなぜ進まないか研究開発室 ―求められる日本男性のニーズに合った制度への変更― "Why don't men take the paternity holidays? changes needed in the system for Japanese demand", by 松田 茂樹, 第一生命経済研究所, 2006, written using survey information about the small number of men taking paternity leave.
男性の育休取得が激減…背景に「パタハラ "Big decrease in the amount of paternity leave, influenced by Paternity Harassment", by 渥美由喜, NIKKEI STYLE, 5 Aug 2013, Written to find the way to get rid of paternity harassment.
「イクメン」を褒められても…減った給料、消えない後ろめたさ Withnews, 02 Jan 2018
「イクメン推進で会社は成長する」働き方が変わる 3つのキーワード Huffpost, 30 Mar 2016
Information on the government's Ikumen Project to increasing the number of men taking paternity leave and recognise companies supporting paternity leave. Includes a list of companies receiving Ikumen awards for supporting paternity leave.
Japan's companies are beginning to rethink paternity leave policies Only 3% of Japanese men take paternity leave but more men want to and the Government aims for 13% of men taking paternity leave by 2020. This article looks what companies are doing, focusing on the example of pharmaceutical company MSD and the family of one of its employees Masafui Umeda. Japan Times, 31 Mar 2018
Researchers have figured out why almost no men take paternity leave in a country that offers 12 months of it, by Isaballa Stager, QUARTZ, 22 Sep 2017, Author thinks that Japan has one of the most generous paternity-leave policies among developed countries. However, a look around the average, Japanese office might not seem that way.
Japanese women suffer widespread 'maternity harassment' at work Half of short-term workers discriminated against after becoming pregnant, survey says, as harassment complaints rise 18%. Guardian Newspaper, 18 Nov, 2015.
Maternity Harassment in Japan Ambitious Japanese women struggle to balance family and career.The Diplomat, Feb 11, 2015.
Matahara: When pregnant women, new moms are harassed at work "Like the United States and many other nations, Japan has a law banning discrimination against pregnant women in the workplace. But until very recently, advocates for women say, the law in Japan was routinely ignored." PRI, 9 Sep, 2015
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.
Over 1 in 10 men have experienced ‘paternity harassment': survey 'Survey results show a staggering gap between the government's push for a family-friendly working environment and workplace realities'. Japan Times, 24 Jan, 2014.
Cabinet seeks to raise percentage of men taking paternity leave to 80% by 2020 'The government said it will also promote matchmaking, set numerical targets for getting men more involved in child care, and provide more support for families with three or more children.' Japan Times, 20 Mar, 2015.
Fathers in Japan - Parental leave in a father-unfriendly work culture by Hideki Nakazato, 2014. (Downloads as a pdf file). This is a presentation in English by a Japanese researcher which includes the experiences of six men who took paternity leave in Japan. It's a bit difficult to follow but has useful information. He has also written this book chapter in English:
Fathers on Leave Alone in Japan: The Lived Experience by Hideki Nakazato, 2016. (Downloads as a pdf file). It includes information about both the process of getting parental leave and the impact on their working situation, and the experience of being on parental leave and looking after children alone. You can find some other work on this issue by Nakazato (including in Japanese?).
Paternity Leave in Japan: the law vs the reality Includes a short story about one family's experiences. 2020 Mum in Tokyo, 31 Jul 2017.
夫に育休は取って欲しい？取るとしたらいつからが理想なのか Kidsna, 05 Feb 2018
Comparative Perspectives on Work-Life Balance and Gender Equality: Fathers on Leave Alone A book edited by Margaret O'Brien and Karin Wall with chapters on the experiences of fathers on paternity leave in different countries (includes the chapter by Nakazato above). Palgrave, 2017. (Downloads as a pdf file).
Japan’s mothers go back to work, but find the opportunities lacking New York Times) 28 Sep 2018.
Moms continue to face hurdles returning to work as Abe wavers on day care and women's empowerment goals Japan Times, Oct 4, 2018
Working Mothers In Japan: The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same This article looks at a range of issues that affect working mothers including childcare facilities, support from men with chidcare and the tax system. Savvy Tokyo, Aug 27, 2018.
In Japan, working mothers battle overwork culture PRI August 24, 2018
Career moms in Japan face systemic barriers that in turn hurt the nation Women limited in return to work due to lack of daycare space — a GDP opportunity cost of 13. Financial Post, 8 Oct 2018.
Career Interruption of Japanese Women: Why Is It So Hard to Balance Work and Childcare? Yanfei Zhou, The Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training, 2015. (Downloads as a pdf file)