The Political Economy of Postwar Family Policy in Japan: Economic Imperatives and Electoral Incentives

Abstract

In recent years, Japanese family policy has shifted from policies that reinforce traditional gender roles to policies that enable women to balance work and family. This article focuses on the political economy of maternity leave, parental leave, and childcare policy in the postwar period prior to changes in the 1990s. The analysis reveals that while traditional views of women's caregiving roles dominated the political agenda, they were subject to a more flexible interpretation when the economic needs of the family or society warranted it. Specifically, labor shortages, the demand for female labor, and the electoral fortunes of the Liberal Democratic Party were key factors driving the expansion of publicly funded childcare and leave legislation.

“Who Cares for the Children?” Lessons from a Global Perspective of Child Care Policy

“…However, as Lewis (2008) highlights in her discourse on child care choice, the need and desire for dual incomes and the growth of single parent families have changed these roles within families in many industrialized countries. Thus, as the policies that nations have put into effect to support child care are examined, one can repeatedly observe the tension between traditional values, national ideologies, and the realistic need for child care accommodations for families (Fagnani 2007;Lambert 2007;Lewis 2008;Murphy-Lawless 2000;Won and Pascall 2004). Research on child care policy and family is inextricably linked with studies on national identity, labor markets, gender equality, and economics, thus revealing a complex mixture of factors and ideals that combine to form family policies (Martin 2007;Mickucka 2008).…”

“…Tension in the reconciliation between work and family life is buoyed further by increasing labor demands and the need for two parent incomes in some parts of the world. The relationship between child care policy and labor supply needs is most evident in the eastern industrialized nations of Japan and Korea, where economic booms led to rapid increases in women's work force participation (Lambert 2007;Won and Pascall 2004). However, though both countries have idealized traditional gender roles, and face a growing number of employed mothers of young children, they diverge considerably on their child care policy and views of the modern family.…”

“…They provided protective policies that limited the number of hours that children and women could work, then they offered maternity leave and child care facilities that fostered a healthy workforce and provided relief from poverty (Lambert 2007;Ono 2009). The early institutions provided a foundation for post World War II policy.…”

“…The early institutions provided a foundation for post World War II policy. In addition, the post war American occupation promoted and encouraged women's and workers rights as part of establishing democracy in Japan (Lambert 2007). Furthermore, the post WW II experience of Japan led to the creation of child welfare policies that were aimed at protecting children by obligating local governments to establish provisions for the care of those children who lacked parental care.…”

“…Furthermore, the post WW II experience of Japan led to the creation of child welfare policies that were aimed at protecting children by obligating local governments to establish provisions for the care of those children who lacked parental care. Japanese women adopted the ideal that their role in the paid labor force was associated with their status as a citizen within the emerging Japanese reconstruction (Lambert 2007). Between 1962 and 1975 Japan's rapid economic growth brought a 44% increase in women's employment and saw a shift from 56% of employed women being single to 51% of them being married (Lambert 2007).…”