Gender disparities persist in parental leave durations in Japan

More fathers in Japan are taking paternity leave than ever before, but a new survey revealed a stark reality: the average duration remains short.

The Kyodo News survey, covering 113 organisations in Japan, found that over 80% of male employees took paternity leave. However, the majority (47%) took only one to three months, followed by 25% taking two weeks to less than a month. This pales in comparison to female employees, who took much longer leave, with 51% averaging 12-18 months and 27% taking 6-12 months.

Addressing the challenges encountered by female employees after extended childcare leave, respondents highlighted various hurdles. Among them, 59% of organisations cited hindered career advancement, 30% flagged restrictions in work hours, and 19% mentioned delays in salary increments.

Japan’s regulations permit employees to take childcare leave until the child reaches one year of age, extendable until the child turns two. Since April 2023, organisations with over 1,000 employees have been mandated to disclose annually the percentage of male employees utilising childcare leave.

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Experts emphasised the significance of paternity leave in redistributing household and child-rearing responsibilities among couples, as well as in fostering a conducive environment for women’s continuous workforce participation. This becomes increasingly pertinent in Japan’s context, grappling with a declining birthrate and a shrinking population.

Toshiyuki Tanaka, Associate Professor at Otsuma Women’s University specialising in gender issues, emphasised, “Women’s careers are affected if they are absent from work for a long time. It is desirable that parents take their leaves in a way that it won’t only be women who take the longer one.”