Quarter of trainees in Japan told to return home if pregnant: survey

Japan wants foreign workers. It doesn't want foreign people.

Yet Japan wants more babies…

The survey results shed light on the "insufficient" recognition among the supervising organizations regarding treatment of female trainees in times of pregnancy, an agency official said.

The survey shows that Japanese know this problem exist since 1993 since first trainee arrive in Japan but keep this quite. Anyway this problem is not unique to trainee, try to get pregnant while someone working in haken company.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/04/09/reference/foreign-trainee-system-said-still-plagued-by-rights-abuses/

Work in Japan for below average wages and slave like conditions-who would want to?

To be fair, the government allow you into the country for the trainee program to work and not for them to have babies to complicate the whole working visa. And the whole point of foreign workers entering is to find a better paying job than their own country and send the money back. So how is it fair if you come here and get pregnant and expect the company to take on the burden? This isn' exactly a vacation. Can't they use protection and wait till they return home to start a family? It might sound cruel, but i don't see why they can't be a bit more responsible too.

Foreign trainees who work under the government-sponsored technical internship program are covered by the equal employment opportunity law, which bans the unfair treatment of women due to marriage, pregnancy or childbirth.

Sex, age, nationality, hair cut/color or skin, harassment and bias: When do Japanese courts ever impose harsh penalties on Japan Inc. from discriminating in employment?

If a trainee person goes to Japan, is to learn, practice, work and after a while return to their country, not to have children...

A country with one of the worst gender equality records in the world, no protection of foreign citizens and toothless unions. These are the consequences.

This is not America. A baby born here is not automatically a Japanese citizen. There is not enough daycare and services even for citizen babies.

Surely, if there are the resources for a dramatic increase in military spending, there is money to establish more daycare centres. This should be a priority regardless of whether the mothers are born here or elsewhere. But we have a bunch of old boys in charge, so that won't happen.

Why would Japan want foreign babies?

Why not? Theres is no reason beyond bigotry and circular reasoning built on false premises ('Japan is homogeneous, therefore it will be homogeneous.') to oppose accepting with roots elsewhere as a part of the population's makeup.

Japan wants foreign workers. It doesn't want foreign people.

Here's the thing : workers have babies.

It would be a positive thing to look after these pregnant workers. Babies are the workforce (and taxpayers) of the future.

After reading through the whole article it gives no reason as to why these trainees have to resign if pregnant. My guess is, the employers don't want deal with maternity leave, which becomes a breech of labor laws as well as equal opportunity employment. I'd like to see the 637 trainees who had to resign launch a law suit against the companies.

Japan has a very dark side when it comes to foreigners. The want foreign culture and influences but want all foreigners to be Japanese. My ex-wife is a classic example. She married me because I wasn't Japanese and then divorced me for the same reason.

Yet Japan wants more babies…

Clarification here, the Japanese GOVERNMENT wants more Japanese babies. The assumption you make is that this is a goal that the people want, and it's rather obvious from the declining birth rate, that they dont agree with you.

Japan wants foreign workers. It doesn't want foreign people.

Already biased. The country needs anyone who can contribute to its socioeconomic development and well-being. Japanese people are critical to free riders who can be foreigners as well as Japanese.

In 2020 in Kumamoto Prefecture in southwestern Japan, a Vietnamese trainee, who feared being dismissed or compelled to return home, gave birth to stillborn twins and was charged with abandoning the bodies. She was given a suspended sentence but is appealing it to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court is likely to overturn the verdict, to let her walk free.

熊本 死産の赤ちゃん遺棄 最高裁 来年に弁論 有罪判決見直しか

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20221209/k10013918261000.html

I'd like to see what policy is done in other host countries regarding the treatment of migrant pregnancies or pregnancy discrimination. To my knowledge, Taiwan bans (compulsory) pregnancy tests and prohibits employers from firing pregnant workers, but it doesn't assure legal status to their children. Malaysia and Thailand require regular pregnancy tests and contraceptives use, alongside deportation threat in case of pregnancy.

A country in such desperate need of babies that it put billions into different kinds of campaigns in hope of it making young people having more babies only has one reason for not wanting these babies or wanting these "guest workers" to stay more than 5 years. The reason being it's not the kind of baby they want. The people in charge of this place would rather see the country burn than normalizing that Japanese can look more than one way.

A person working on a slave labor visa isn't going to have the financial resources to raise a child in Japan.

Even if the father is Japanese?

Interesting and well composed comments guys.

I would add that citizens from abroad particularly involved in these "trainee" programs be warned and fully informed on what they may experience via their governments and associated agencies before coming to a country like Japan or any other that abuses human and worker's rights.

Haven't these trainees heard of contraceptives?

They are just here to grab as much cash and benefited. Having kids here is very expensive. They say you are well off if you have one child, if you are quite comfortably well off you have two kids and very rich you have three.

interesting to know what category interns fall into.

A country with one of the worst gender equality records in the world, no protection of foreign citizens and toothless unions. 

Yes, of course, when assessed by criteria unthinkingly imposed on Japanese society by arrogant westerners who know diddly squat about Japanese culture. [sigh]

I wish foreigners would stop beating Japan with that irrelevant ‘bottom of the world gender equality league’ yardstick. Japanese women have higher levels of life and job satisfaction than women in just about any other developed country. In fact the only native females here who gripe about their lot are those who’ve been brainwashed by ludicrous contemporary western feminist (sic) values.

Foreign women who come here to work on short term contracts should (adhering to contractual obligations to which they have agreed) be responsible and not get pregnant if they wish to remain here for the duration of said contract. The rules governing a working visa are neither sexist nor unfair. If people don’t like them, they should take their trade elsewhere. Nobody’s forcing foreigners to come to Japan!

TT

Japanese women have higher levels of life and job satisfaction than women in just about any other developed country.

They still have to serve the tea, tho, and harassed to wear the appropriate gender shoes, heels. And male coworkers are the ones who get promotions, since Japanese women "are supposed" to get pregnant and leave the company.

Plus, if they're in a yearly contract, many times even a three months contract four times a year (that's how haken works; not always told to the employee), once they get pregnant they're simply let go.

So it's not really a West vs. Japan thing.

As a major economy that places 3rd place with no growth. Many foreigners will leave and not move to Japan. This trend will keep growing. Japan will keep losing its spot to other countries in terms of its economic size.

Yeah, Japan wants babies, but they don’t want foreign babies. They don’t want anybody peeing in the gene pool. Making these foreign trainees quit their jobs and return home is not only a breech of equal opportunity laws it’s also a breech of labor laws by denying them maternity leave. They are also entitled to the government handout of ¥500,000 for having a baby.

Haven't these trainees heard of contraceptives?

What would this have to do with the problem? the trainees should have the right to have kids in the same way Japanese nationals do, the companies that employ them are under the legal obligation to treat them in the same way as if they were Japanese in this aspect.

@virusrex

the [foreign] trainees should have the right to have kids in the same way Japanese nationals do

Well, they do. Of course they do. But they must also abide by the contract they have accepted from their employer, in the same way that a Japanese national would. And, in this case, since the working visa sponsorship contract is terminated upon the employee falling pregnant, that’s that. Selfish and naive to presume otherwise. Good luck with the baby, and don’t let the door hit you on your way out.

TT

Making these foreign trainees quit their jobs and return home is not only a breech of equal opportunity laws it’s also a breech of labor laws by denying them maternity leave. They are also entitled to the government handout of ¥500,000 for having a baby.

Blimey. Don’t know where to start on that. It’s all completely incorrect.

Good luck claiming your leave and your cash handout on your way to the deportation lounge, ladies. Let us know how you get on.

TT

Only a quarter?

They are not being imported to breed.

They are here to do the jobs that Japanese don't want to do for the money offered...

I mean "training."

Quarter of trainees in Japan told to return home if pregnant: survey

To turn this on its head, it means that 75% of female trainees who fall pregnant while in Japan would (theoretically) be supported.

Pretty liberal as far as I can see.

If the father is Japanese and acknowledges the child then they have aided the country.

If the father is not Japanese then return them to country of origin.

The only reason the government is finally making a semi-serious move on this issue is that the numbers of trainnes wanting to come to Japan had plummeted in recent months, not only due to the weakened yen but also human rights abuses like these. Employers need to be careful since word gets around with just a few screen taps these days.

Work not give birth

Tokyo living...

If a trainee person goes to Japan, is to learn, practice, work and after a while return to their country, not to have children...

Officially yes, but the real reason they are here is to fill in the gap of low paying, undesirable jobs that employers can't find workers for. Or simply.... Cheap workers. Not paid less than Japanese doing the same work but willing to do the job that most Japanese will not.

Japan does NOT WANT/ACCEPT anchor babies.

By falling preggy, these foreign women are in breach of K (contract).

There are sanctions for breach of K.

You don't necessarily have to agree with the penalties for breach, BUT YER GONNA GET THEN ANYWAY!

Why is it so DIFFICULT (for some here) to grasp this "basic" premise"?!

Jeeeeez!

Is it possible to disallow pregnancy?

Looks to me like an abusive contract. What does the MOJ has to say about that?

Yet Japan wants more babies…

Yes, Japanese ones.

I am foreign and worked at an oyster processing factory in Hiroshima. The foreign “trainees” were all Vietnamese women under 25. They worked at minimum wage, around ¥900. I made around ¥1200 an hour. The Japanese staff was “welcome” to “visit” the Vietnamese staff at their dormitory at all hours of the night. The Vietnamese women were literally working 24 hours a day. One Vietnamese woman told me that they had limited health care through their “posting service”. It is a very flawed system!

They're here to work and acquire skills, not breed and have families here.

Why doesn't the Japanese Government just tie up the slaves after their 9 to 5 jobs? I mean, from what I read here, these foreign workers are not human with human needs. From what I read here, foreign people are animals to be used. And you are right, this is not America. This treatment of foreign workers is Japan.