Gender inequality, in contemporary societies, is still happening in world. However, gender inequality is a serious problem in conservative Japan. Based on the Japanese cultural behavior, women have not received any respectful from the men. In Japanese culture, according to the Confucian idea, women were expected to obey three kinds of men throughout their lives, “the father in their youth, the husband after marriage, and the son in old age” (Nae 66). Therefore, women would not desire to be a career’s woman or tough woman. The Japanese women should follow the conservative employment system not to work, or they could work and have their careers.
The Confucianism influenced on the gender culture of Japanese society. Pre-Meiji, Japan imposed a submissive role to women. Japanese women had no right to administrate or inherit the family fortune. Moreover, they could not had assets that they brought with them upon marriage. However, Japanese males were able to use their wives’ properties, legally. After 1900, the girls could have compulsory education curriculum as boys had. However, girls were able to study four or six years of schooling only.
In Japan, women cannot as easily get a job than men because women have to take a big load for family issues. The men were regarded as sole bread-winner of the family, so women have to take care of the family daily duties. Commonly, people believed that too much education was unnecessary for a woman because woman should become a good wife and wise mother. Moreover, women are expected to help their husband. This is a job for women in Japan’s society. Women jobs are relieving their husbands of anxieties at home, managing household affairs, looking after the household finance, taking care of old people, and raising up their children. In addition, Japanese males think about Japanese females as baby-making machines. Therefore, Japanese males thought Japanese females could not have careers because their duties are stay home.
Furthermore, women would not have the same benefits as men such as permanent contracts, good salaries, training and career advancement opportunities. According to the 2017 Global Gender Gap Report, “Japan ranks 114 out of 144 countries in terms of gender disparities. Japanese female population earns 71 percent of men’s average pay” (Nae 68). In addition, the companies do not like to invest money, time, and training to women because female employees would marry and quit their jobs after a few years. Therefore, the Japanese women work as part time or temporary jobs mostly in Japan because their employment benefits have not improved in decades.
On the other hand, the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzou Abe had announced a new plan “Womenomics”. The goal helps women in their work places, especially in leadership positions. He promised that he wants to build “a society in which women can shine” (Nae67-68). Moreover, the childcare facilities are serious problems in Japan. If there are enough amount of childcare facilities, women could get back to work. Then mothers put their children in daycare, so they could focus on their works. When women go to work, they help to grow economics well. The Japanese women should break with an obsolete tradition, and they should share the housework and child caring tasks with their spouses. Actually, the Japanese females have higher education now, so they could to be independent to work.
Nowadays, in Japan, there are many kinds of cultural discriminations to females. Japan is a conservative country, so women have to obey men in, naturally. They should obey and follow the traditional trends, and they should only to be good housewives at home. Therefore, the Japanese societies are still discriminating about female status in Japan. On the other hand, should they against the sexism societies because the world is changing? Women should have their rights for their employments. Moreover, the Japanese women have to be toughness. Women should have rights to have their careers as men do.