To combat Japan’s record-low fertility rate and support working parents, Tokyo will implement a four-day workweek for government employees starting in April, offering increased flexibility. Additionally, a new policy allows parents of elementary school children to leave work early in exchange for a reduced salary. These initiatives aim to alleviate the pressures of work-life balance, a significant factor contributing to Japan’s declining birthrate. The measures follow other national efforts to encourage family formation and address Japan’s challenging work culture.
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As an employee who values work-life balance and personal time, I am thrilled to hear that Australian employees now have the right to ignore work emails and calls after hours. This is not only a victory for those in Australia but resonates with employees worldwide who have long struggled with boundaries between work life and personal life.
It is astonishing that such a law needed to be implemented in the first place. It should be common sense that once the workday is over, employees should have the freedom to disconnect and recharge without the expectation of being on-call 24/7. Personal time is precious, and employers should respect that boundary.… Continue reading
South Korea keeps shattering its own record for the world’s lowest fertility rate, and it’s no surprise with the state of the work culture and the skyrocketing cost of raising a child in the country. The government’s proposal for a 69-hour workweek was fortunately rejected, but it’s a clear indication that there is little effort being made to address the root causes of this alarming trend. The statistic that 54.5% of all children born last year in South Korea are from upper-class families is a telling sign of the financial burden associated with having children in the country.
In the past, having children was seen as a financial investment – they could work on the family farm and support their parents as they got older.… Continue reading
John Q. Hosedrinker