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This book examines key issues in gender equality and corporate social responsibility in Japan. Legal compliance, the business case and social regulation are examined as driving factors for enhancing gender equality in corporations. In turn, case studies from various contexts, such as the hotel industry, retail and financial services companies add practical insights to the theoretical debate. The role of governments, NGOs and supranational organizations is examined as well. Given its scope, the book will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students, scholars, policymakers and practitioners interested in advancing the gender, CSR and sustainability debates.
The number of women in positions of power and authority in Japanese companies has remained small despite the increase in the number of educated women and the passage of legislation on gender equality. In Too Few Women at the Top, Kumiko Nemoto draws on theoretical insights regarding Japan’s coordinated capitalism and institutional stasis to challenge claims that the surge in women’s education and employment will logically lead to the decline of gender inequality and eventually improve women’s status in the Japanese workplace. Nemoto’s interviews with diverse groups of workers at three Japanese financial companies and two cosmetics companies in Tokyo reveal the persistence of vertical sex segregation as a cost-saving measure by Japanese companies. Women’s advancement is impeded by customs including seniority pay and promotion, track-based hiring of women, long working hours, and the absence of women leaders. Nemoto contends that an improvement in gender equality in the corporate system will require that Japan fundamentally depart from its postwar methods of business management. Only when the static labor market is revitalized through adoption of new systems of cost savings, employee hiring, and rewards will Japanese women advance in their chosen professions. Comparison with the situation in the United States makes the author’s analysis of the Japanese case relevant for understanding the dynamics of the glass ceiling in U.S. workplaces as well.
Diploma Thesis from the year 2008 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: 1,0, TU Bergakademie Freiberg (Chair of Business English, Business Communication and Intercultural Communication), language: English, abstract: The representation of women in management is a globally and frequently discussed phenomenon. Albeit the worldwide number of female managers is continuously increasing, progress is still slow and full of barriers (ILO, 2004). These obstacles are described as an invisible glass ceiling: Negative attitudes and prejudices within organizations prevent women from climbing the career ladder (Wirth, 2001). However, culture seems to be an important factor of influence for female management opportunities. For example, female managers tend to be generally less accepted in Asia than in America or Eastern Europe (ILO, 2004). Among Asian countries, Japan is very special: Although the country is one of the most developed and richest economies in the world, gender equality is extremely low there (UNDP, 2007; Fackler, 2007). Women are often hired for administrative tasks only and not allowed to pursue own careers. Despite growing attempts to strengthen gender equality, Japanese females are still discriminated against and expected to stick to their traditional duties as mothers, wives, and “office flowers” (Faiola, 2007; Ogasawara, 1998). Female under-representation is notably high for management positions and seems to increase with the level of seniority (Wirth, 2001). Consequently, the Japanese glass ceiling is also known as “concrete ceiling” reflecting the enormous level of gender discrimination (Wahlin, 2007; Penketh, 2008). Japan’s rigid and outstanding gender inequality is strongly influenced by the national culture and its major impact on the societal role of women. On the one hand, the Japanese are known for their ability to change but on the other hand, they always try to maintain their special Japanese identity within every aspect of life. Thus, fixed gender roles of men as breadwinners and women as housewives persist even in spite of growing internationalization (Haak & Haak, 2006). Nevertheless, environmental changes like an aging and decreasing population force Japanese companies to accept females as part of the talent pool (Fackler, 2007; Otake, 2008). According to these facts, female managers in Japan turn out to be an exciting field of research: They are needed but also discriminated against at the same time. The objective of this diploma thesis is to examine current trends and to analyze challenges as well as existing opportunities to improve their situation.
Why do Japanese women enjoy a high sense of well-being in a context of high inequality? Beyond the Gender Gap in Japan brings together researchers from across the social sciences to investigate this question. The authors analyze women’s values and the lived experiences at home, in the family, at work, in their leisure time, as volunteers, and in politics and policy-making. Their research shows that the state and firms have blurred “the public” and “the private” in postwar Japan, constraining individuals’ lives, and reveals the uneven pace of change in women’s representation in politics. Yet, despite these constraints, the increasing diversification in how people live and how they manage their lives demonstrates that some people are crafting a variety of individual solutions to structural problems. Covering a significant breadth of material, the book presents comprehensive findings that use a variety of research methods—public opinion surveys, in-depth interviews, a life history, and participant observation—and, in doing so, look beyond Japan’s perennially low rankings in gender equality indices to demonstrate the diversity underneath, questioning some of the stereotypical assumptions about women in Japan.
The Japan on show in the 2019 Rugby World Cup was an admirably safe, stable, resilient, and efficient society. However, that appearance disguises crucial vulnerabilities and social ailments, including an ageing and shrinking population, slow productivity growth, a new low-wage, insecure workforce, declining marriage and fertility rates, and an extreme level of gender inequality. Within this gender gap lies the key both to the ailments and the cure. A deterioration in the use of human capital and a decline in family formation have become entrenched thanks to discrimination against the female half of the population. Yet gradual change is occurring, thanks not only to demographic necessity but also to a significant rise in female access to university education since the 1990s and the emergence of a wide range of role models to inspire and empower the next generation. Analysis of trends and policy options, combined with interviews with 21 role models spanning fields from business to the arts, diplomacy to politics, music to e-commerce, provides ample grounds for optimism. Japan is becoming a nation with an increasing number of potential female leaders. If this rise can be accelerated by both public policy and private action, Japan could achieve much greater social justice and sustainable prosperity in the decades to come.
The in-depth analyses presented in this book have a dual focus: (1) Social mechanisms through which the gender wage gap, gender inequality in the attainment of managerial positions, and gender segregation of occupations are generated in Japan; and (2) Assessments of the effects of firms’ gender-egalitarian personnel policies and work–life balance promotion policies on the gender wage gap and the firms’ productivity. In addition, this work reviews and discusses various economic and sociological theories of gender inequality and gender discrimination and considers their consistencies and inconsistencies with the results of the analysis of Japanese data. Furthermore, the book critically reviews and discusses the historical development of the Japanese employment system by juxtaposing rational and cultural explanations. This book is an English translation by the author of a book he first published in Japanese in 2017. The original Japanese-language edition received two major book awards in Japan. One was The Nikkei Economic Book Culture Award, which is given every year by the Nikkei Newspaper Company and the Japan Economic Research Center to a few best books on economy and society. The other was The Showa University’s Women’s Culture Research Award, which is bestowed annually on a single book of research that promotes gender equality. Kazuo Yamaguchi is the Ralph Lewis Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago.
This edited book highlights the unique cultural and socioeconomic elements of Japan and the strong influence of those elements on women leaders in the nation. It shows that gender inequality and under-utilization of female talent are deeply rooted in Japanese society, explaining why Japan lags behind other countries in Asia in this regard. The contributors are expert academicians and practitioners with a clear understanding of Japanese women leaders' aspirations and frustrations. This book has critical implications for the development of women leaders in Japan, providing intriguing insights into developing the potential of highly qualified women leaders in diverse Japanese contexts in which traditional cultural expectations and modernized values coexist.
"Gender Equality and Responsible Business places gender equality at the heart of the responsible business agenda with the aim of contributing to CSR practice as well as research. Discussion about gender issues in the field of corporate responsibility has focused on workplace issues and corporate boards, which are important areas of work. However, the great benefit of exploring gender issues through a responsible business lens is that this requires us to also examine the wider gender impacts of business in the marketplace - for example, with regard to suppliers, supply chains, and consumers, and with respect to the communities where business operates, and the wider ecological environment - indeed throughout corporate value chains.Through contributions from practitioners in business and civil society, as well as academia, this book broadens the agenda, opening the field to new voices, and facilitates dialogue among and between practitioners and researchers. Contributions within the edited collection elucidate current practice, bring new perspectives, and help us to expand the field of responsible business with regard to gender equality, and beyond."--Provided by publisher.
This book examines the impact of global human rights norms on the development of women's, children's, and minority rights in Japan since the early 1990s.