This article discusses the 악녀알바 distinct points of female employees in Japan that are different from those in Korea. Female boardroom representation remains a key metric to track the global progress on gender equality, and Japan deviates from the childcare-centric narrative – Japanese women fared worse than men more so because of Japanese women overrepresentation in non-regular and low-wage jobs, rather than because of childcare obligations. South Korea and Japan share a profound difference in focus when it comes to wartime memory, with South Korea focusing more on collaboration between scholars from Japan, South Korea, and the United States.
Japan, however, has a distinct approach to female employees that is different from that of South Korea. In the past decade, Japan has sought to enhance the role of female employees in the workplace through initiatives such as Nikkei Womanomics and IBM Japan’s manager training program. Through these initiatives, companies have seemed to recognize the reasons for which female employees should be included in their workforce. Nikkei Womanomics was created as a way to develop male managers’ understanding of communication with women and their mindsets regarding women in the workplace. The project also published its “100 Best Companies for Women” survey, which surveyed over 2 million people in 2018 and brought 30 women executives into management positions at major companies across Japan. IBM Japan’s manager training program focused on teaching managers how to better understand communication with female employees and other aspects of diversity management.
This has seen a rise in female boardroom representation and employment, with women filling 38.6 percent of executive roles in 2020. This is a significant improvement from the 16 percent of 2019 and marks a key milestone in gender equality. However, wage employment remains a key metric to track global progress in gender equality, and Japan still lags behind the global average.
Figure 2 shows that Japan has the lowest overall level of female labour force participation compared to South Korea, urban China and the global average. This is partly because Japanese women are still overrepresented in discontinuing work after having children due to childcare obligations. In contrast, South Korea has a much higher rate of female labour force participation than Japan, and this is attributed to its childcare centric narrative that helps women balance childcare with paid work.
Although Japan has the highest female labour force participation rate of the three countries, its occupational outcomes are still lower than South Korea and China. Furthermore, Japan has a higher rate of female full-time employees but fewer women in managerial and top managerial positions. The gender gap in Japan’s labor market is also highlighted by the fact that many layoffs involve women. This reflects a gendered care work system that disproportionately affects women. In comparison, China has made significant progress in breaking the gender gap by increasing opportunities for female employees in managerial positions, as well as providing measures such as paid maternity leave to help encourage more women to join the workforce. It also boasts one of the lowest rates of part-time employment among females due to its implementation of policies aimed at promoting full-time employment for both genders.
Japan is the second largest labour market in the world after South Korea, with an estimated 40 million workers. Despite having one of the most advanced economies and a larger female labour force than most countries, Japan still faces a significant gender gap in its labour market. This gap is due to the extensive tax codes and policies that stifle women’s employment opportunities, which cost Japan millions in lost productivity every year.
The comparative studies on wartime history memory formation between Japan and Korea provide clear evidence of a profound difference in their national memory. Scholars have argued that the power and persistence of Japanese wartime narratives – including those of collaboration, teaching class, and war – have played a central role in forming the nation’s identity. In East Asia, during World War II countries such as Japan used women for labor. Evidence from this wartime period reveals the profound difference between the two countries’ national memories when it comes to war remembrance. While South Korea focused on collective trauma and victimization due to Japanese colonization, Japan has not only avoided discussing its own involvement in the war but also discussed its own victims less than South Korea. This reluctance has been attributed to a lack of understanding of their role as aggressors or collaborators during WWII as well as an unwillingness to confront their past. In recent years there has been increased effort to bridge this gap between Japanese and Korean perspectives through collaborative projects such as teaching classes on both countries’ war memories and cultural exchanges between students from both countries.
This is due to the refusal of many Japanese companies to hire Korean employees, which has been cited by the Japanese government as a violation of their national security. This decision has caused an outcry in both South Korea and Japan, with some citing the legacy of colonialism and war that still lingers between the two countries. The nationalist mindset of both countries has also been given attention, with many feeling that hiring Koreans threatens their sense of identity and dismisses the very possibility of basic relations between them. This combustible mixture has caused tension between the two countries, which only recently settled outstanding bilateral issues through diplomatic talks. War is still a reality for Japan and South Korea, and it is clear that any company looking to bridge this gap needs to tread carefully if they want to avoid being caught in between these two nations’ identity politics.
While there have been many attempts to try and improve the relationship between both countries, it is the distinctive points of female employees in Japan that are different from those in Korea that have really made a difference. In December 2015, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that he would renew his apology for Japan’s role in World War II, and this was followed by the announcement of bilateral security talks with South Korea’s Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se. These talks were aimed at establishing dialogue between both sides and helped to create a renewed understanding of their shared history.
In Japan, female employees are tackling gendered childcare expectations and bringing gender diversity to the workplace. South Korean women are empowering themselves and making progress in their respective countries through policies, programs and initiatives which benefit labor force participation. This initiative also has the potential to boost national GDP and benefit governments in both countries. The U.S.-Japan-ROK cooperation is a strong example of shared global interests for security and prosperity, with company surveys showing that Japanese women are more likely to stay in their jobs for a longer period of time than men due to the reason behind career opportunities, workplace environment, corporate management approach, etc. A survey conducted by a company across three countries – Japan, South Korea and the U.S., revealed that Japanese companies rate higher than those in South Korea when it comes to labor policies for female employees’ status. The data show that Japan is taking steps towards creating better conditions for women workers than other countries surveyed.