Guilt, Gender, and an Inclusive Recovery: A Lesson from Japan

IMF Blog, September 9, 2020

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Close to one million women—the majority of whom worked in temporary and part-time positions—left the labor force between December and April.
Japan’s voluntary month-and-a-half shutdown of the economy in April due to COVID-19 has had a higher cost for women than men.
Amid massive disruptions to childcare and schools, women often face greater responsibility and guilt for being neither the ideal mother nor the ideal employee.

Survey of nearly 1,000 working-age Japanese men and women on preferences for job attributes affecting work-life balance, including overtime, job insecurity, risk of departmental transfer, and risk of geographical relocation.
Women are more willing than men to sacrifice significant salary in exchange for greater work-life balance.
- For certain age and salary ranges, mothers are willing to sacrifice approximately $3,000 more in annual salary than men to avoid relocation risk.
- Mothers would forego roughly $6,500 more than men to avoid 45 + hours of overtime per month.
Men who do not have children are on average more willing to trade wages for work-life balance than those with children.

Women reported higher feelings of guilt than men for missing child-related activities (e.g., school events), cooking, and taking care of parents because of work.
Higher levels of guilty feelings correspond to greater willingness to pay for more work-life balance.
- Women who would feel highly guilty for missing a child’s event or not caring for their parents are willing to sacrifice $12,000 in their annual wage to avoid 45+ hours a month of overtime.

Evidence supports wider use of “limited-regular” contracts that set limits on overtime and mandatory relocations for workers in traditional, permanent jobs.
- Wider availability of such employment options would increase productivity and thus wages for those currently under non-regular contracts.
- Men and women alike benefit, but these contracts may appeal especially to working mothers, the majority of whom are currently non-regular employees with lower pay and job security.
Policymakers need to be sensitive to gender-based differences in guilt to ensure limited-regular contracts do not further entrench gender gaps or create new glass ceilings for women.
Mobility across contracts is important:
- Workers should be able to switch contracts based on life stage (for example, preferring limited-regular contracts when children are small, and potentially preferring different arrangements later).
Japan’s work-life balance ranking: an OECD index ranked Japan 35th out of 40 countries in terms of work-life balance.

The pandemic and widespread teleworking have shaken the long-standing stereotype of Japan's “salaryman.”
Evidence shows working men and women in Japan value a reasonable office-home balance.
With the right policies, the pandemic can serve as a catalyst for empowering women and creating flexibility that supports gender equality and a more resilient society.
Gender equality must be a top priority to build resilience for the future.

Chie Aoyagi — September 9, 2020