Cadet Killian Buckley's Blog

As I am completing my research proposal, I saw an article regarding the women’s rights movement in Japan.  The Japanese government has been supporting the role of working women in Japan.  Recently a Japanese politician, Eikei Suzuki, took paternity leave after the birth of his child to support his wife’s economic pursuits.  His choice caused a media frenzy and brought the issue of paternity leave and women in the workforce to the forefront of the news in Japan.  Japan’s government has steadily been encouraging the women in the workforce with various policies, such as paternity leave.

Why is Japan doing this?  Japan hopes, like many other nations, to increase their productivity, their workforce, and their labor capital by further involving the other 50% of the population, women.  Child bearing and child care, in many traditional societies, lies upon the shoulders of the women.  This job is, within itself, a full time job.  However, this job does not add to the labor capital of a nation or to the GDP of a nation.  Therefore, many nations, like Japan, are expanding work opportunities for women in order to expand their production capital by enabling women to compete in the workforce.