Hong Kong
Act Daily News
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A baby using on his father’s shoulders smiles as they stroll by means of a park lined with yellow autumn-touched leaves – that’s the typical picture of a Japanese “ikumen”.
The time period strings collectively the Japanese phrases ikuji, which means care for youngsters, and ikemen, referring to cool-looking males.
Japanese authorities have extensively promoted the time period prior to now decade to fight the nation’s notoriously lengthy working hours that haven’t solely disadvantaged workaholic fathers of household time and stay-home moms of careers, however have helped drive the start charge to one of many lowest on the planet.
To seize the “last chance to reverse” the scenario, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida final week unveiled a raft of insurance policies, together with boosts to youngster assist and a pledge to elevate the variety of male employees taking paternity depart from the present 14% to 50% by 2025, and 85% by 2030.
But some on the planet’s third-largest financial system – which has lengthy struggled with a falling fertility charge and an getting older inhabitants – are skeptical the plan can actually transfer the needle.
Makoto Iwahashi, a member of POSSE, a labor union devoted to youthful employees, stated whereas the federal government’s plan was well-intentioned, many Japanese males had been just too scared to take paternity depart resulting from potential repercussions from their employers.
Japanese males are entitled to 4 weeks of versatile paternity depart, on as much as 80% of their wage, underneath a invoice handed by the Japanese parliament in 2021.
Japan’s rural communities are dying out. The downside is, so are its cities
But regardless of the regulation, males remained “afraid” that taking the depart might have a unfavourable impact on their promotion prospects or that they could be reassigned to a special place with fewer obligations, Iwahashi stated.
While it’s unlawful to discriminate towards employees who take maternity and paternity depart in Japan, Iwahashi stated employees on fixed-term contracts had been notably susceptible.
And anyway, “A little tweak on paternity leave won’t significantly change a declining birth rate,” he added.
Hisakazu Kato, an economics professor at Meiji University in Tokyo, stated whereas huge firms had turn out to be extra accepting of parental depart through the years, smaller corporations nonetheless had reservations.
“Small companies are afraid they will face (worker shortages) due to childcare leave, and this puts pressure on young fathers who want to take childcare leave in future,” he stated.
At a press convention final week, the prime minister acknowledged the issues and pledged to think about offering allowances for small and medium-sized enterprises, with particulars to be introduced in June at his yearly coverage blueprint.
He additionally unveiled a plan aimed toward boosting the uptake of paternity depart by encouraging corporations to reveal their efficiency.
In 2022, the variety of new births in Japan dipped under 800,000 for the primary time since data started in 1899, the newest milestone in a pattern that the federal government sees as more and more alarming.
Last week, Kishida went so far as to warn that “the next six to seven years will be the last chance to reverse the declining birthrate trend”.
But Stuart Gietel-Basten, a professor of public coverage and social science at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, cautioned {that a} low start charge was usually an indication of entrenched cultural components that may possible be proof against insurance policies adjustments. Such components may vary from work tradition to gender attitudes, he added.
“Increasing paternity leave is a good policy, no doubt. It will certainly provide many men (and women) with a positive outcome. However, unless the prevailing cultural norms and attitudes change the impact at a macro level could be limited,” stated the scholar.
Riki Khorana, 26, who plans to tie the knot together with his girlfriend in June, stated the excessive price of residing was one in every of his largest issues in beginning a household.
Working as an engineer at one in every of Japan’s largest conglomerates on the coronary heart of Tokyo, the nation’s capital, he recognized himself as a comparatively excessive earner, but he stated he at present lives together with his dad and mom in Yokohama, Japan’s second largest metropolis south of Tokyo.
After getting married, he’ll transfer out of his dad or mum’s home however will nonetheless have to remain in Yokohama resulting from Tokyo’s excessive rents.
Tokyo is the ninth most costly metropolis for expatriates to stay in, in line with US consulting agency Mercer’s Cost of Living Survey.
Khorana stated he deliberate to have two kids, but when there have been more practical authorities insurance policies then he would take into account extra.
“For me, I feel like I cannot afford more than two children,” he stated. “There are less financially secure people who think they cannot have more than one child.”
The nation’s fertility charge – the typical variety of kids born to girls throughout their reproductive years – has fallen to 1.3, far under the two.1 required to take care of a secure inhabitants.
Over the years, specialists have additionally pointed to a way of prevailing pessimism amongst younger individuals who, because of the pressures of labor and financial stagnation, have little confidence sooner or later.
Last week, the prime minister stated he deliberate market reforms that may push up wages and financial help for younger employees. He additionally pledged to introduce advantages that would assist freelance or self-employed employees and spoke of additional allowances for youngster assist, schooling and housing.
The economics professor Kato felt the brand new insurance policies had been unlikely to be sufficient to resolve the nation’s demographic issues.
But he noticed a silver lining in encouraging paternity depart.
“I think this is a good proposal as it not only improves family policies, but also gender equality,” he stated.
Source: www.cnn.com