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Gov't urges male civil servants to take at least 1-month paternity leave

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I see a knock-off effect here. Many Japanese women move back with their mothers after the birth of their (particularly first) child, and once the mother grows accustomed to her mother taking care of everything and the father excluded, that sticks.

Having the father involved from day one could result in a different parameter in which the father is not only accustomed to the needs of the wife and child but is more able to respond to them, even after returning to work. I hope to see a lot more fathers in the diaper section of the supermarket on their way home.

10 ( +11 / -1 )

And, is the same government who is ‘urging’ them to take the time off going to guarantee they have their same jobs to go back to, if they have a job at all? Just more hot air from the Japanese ministry of BS!

9 ( +11 / -2 )

The Japanese government formally decided Friday to encourage male civil service workers to take childcare leave for a minimum of one month, starting April next year.

But what if the baby's not due until September?

/s

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Japanese government formally decided Friday to encourage male civil service workers to take childcare leave for a minimum of one month, starting April next year.

Know what encourage doesn't mean? Mandatory. All smoke and mirrors. They encourage it and don't make it mandatory.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

Wonder how are the managers graded.

Good that they put some effort into this.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

How much, exactly, is this "partly"? Unless it's close to 100%, most families will not be able to afford the father taking paternity leave.

That's one piece of infomation this "newspaper" failed to report. I don't remember the exact number but I asked when my first kid was born and the percentage of salary left was laughable, like impossible to take a month off without losing most of it.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

So much urging going on...to no effect.

Can’t Japanese politicos make laws?

6 ( +6 / -0 )

@Kazuaki Shimazaki

I've been disappointed too many times to be optimistic about these types of things. It's going to take a few generations to truly change the working culture of Japan and, while that might benefit my daughter's children (if she so chooses to have any), it doesn't help my family much. We would desperately like another child, even two... but the longer we stay in Japan, the less likely that seems like it will ever happen.

Maybe I'm wrong, but experience has taught me that it's better to expect nothing and be surprised than to be let down again and again.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Under the paternity leave system, up to a week of paid leave is provided, with employment insurance partly making up for lost salary in the period taken thereafter.

How much, exactly, is this "partly"? Unless it's close to 100%, most families will not be able to afford the father taking paternity leave.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

I honestly believe this is a show. The reason I know this is because i know a few people that work directly for the government and one person can't even take paternity leave even though his daughter was born 2 months ago. Also, I don't blame the managers. They are simply enforcing the culture set forth by the corporate or government culture that is in place.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Pathetic.

Just how many men will be bullied and demoted for even attempting to take paternity leave?

As bad as they treat women who get pregnant (or in some cases even just trying to) and take maternity leave, do you think they would treat men any better?

My poor husband can't even get shogatsu off. He'll be begrudgingly on all of your TV's if you masochistically turn on NHK that morning since he's the only one who speaks English... In a work force-pool of over 300 people. Riiiigggght.

Men are supposed to be slaves to their jobs and women are supposed to be slaves to the men and their own uteruses. S-P-A-R-E M-E with your pseudo-progressive b*st.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Given that most of them don't do anything useful anyway, it's questionable that's they'd be missed unless you're the chair they keep warm.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Just had to logon and post.. regarding parental leave ( or childcare leave as it’s called), I am currently on leave together with my wife and it’s the best decision we ever have done. Both of us are helping each other to raise our beautiful daughter and can actually enjoy it. We saw how much her sister was struggling raising one and then another, not much sleep, stressed, tired etc etc.. sure, we have had a few tiring situations but both agree that it’s a two person job if you want to remain sane and healthy.

We will both be off until she is 1 year old, honestly, right now there is no way I can see myself going back to work when I have something much more important to do here..

regarding money, so far we have not had to dip into our savings at all.. sure, we haven’t added any new savings but passive incomes, insurance payouts etc are about enough, even to cover a few trips we have done and will such as Okinawa, Fiji and back to Europe. As you don’t pay income tax, health insurance nor pension during leave time it’s actually pretty good for spending all this time together as a family

1 ( +2 / -1 )

But you need to compare 'urges' vs 'compulsory' when deciding...just think how your country needs so much, you must 'compulsorily' work beyond 60 years...etc.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

A month? Not enough time, surely! Take three, four, take six months.

We the taxpayers will pay for it!

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Paternity Leave? (笑)

There are no more baby's being born. What's the old saying?

'Close the stable door after the horse has bolted', yep... nice policy move???

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I wonder how many privet sector bosses are thinking, " don't even think about it!" you are invited to nothing

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Hey by experience as for being father of 3, you don't need a month.

It has to be a LEGAL due FOR ALL so no one can do wrong to you for be(com)ing involved in your family. Else your demography falls to ash.

My wife went back to Japan for my first and stayed about 6 months. I had planned taking 2 weeks leave for the birth and all went fine.

I got 2 weeks granted fully paid by law in my country each time. It is enough.

Then the most important in life is that you can present for your family when they need it. A day or a week or a month...

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

@savethegaijinToday 08:53 pm JST

While we hadn't seen it in action, as I've said earlier this article says the government has officially declared parental leave to be a good thing and managers will receive improved performance ratings for making it happen. If no one has paternal leave, the bureaucrat would have some explaining to do.

Unless they are a hardcore resister, I don't see the reason for pessimism.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Do the hustle Today 04:42 pm JST

While one can always insist they do better,

Under the policy, managers' performance will be evaluated partly on how easy they make it for subordinates to take paternity leave. Other measures will be introduced to make it easier for new fathers to make arrangements for their work to be done in their absence.

They are making an effort to guarantee this, with the exact measures being left to the local management to fit with local conditions. But at least managers can't (unless they connive with their subordinates and lie) fail to give the leave without suffering at least a relative penalty to any peer who manages to do so.

As for the money bit, again while it could be better (for example with the government just handing out one month of paid leave), if a couple doesn't have reserves for one month, they don't have the padding to produce a kid.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

Japan's government is a lot more progressive than its private sector.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

Gov't do not have to make money, this means that they have excess employees. They have no thoughts for Toyota, Honda & farmers or M & S companies that have not enough employees. No wonder everyone wants to be a gov't worker. Now, I understand.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

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