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The math says that "Japanese women will run out of money 20 years before they die," and I wanted to know why. Here is what I found: a thread https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-11/japan-s-population-crisis-is-pushing-more-women-into-poverty?srnd=premium-asia
At first glance, things seem to be getting better for Japanese women. In an economy that’s historically lagged other developed nations when it comes to female workforce participation, a record 71% are now employed, an 11 point leap over a decade ago. /2
But even with these advantages, a confluence of factors that include an aging population, falling birth rates and anachronistic gender dynamics are conspiring to damage our prospects for a comfortable retirement. /3
The days of being “totally dependent on a public pension” are over.” Japan’s pension system is ranked 31st out of 37 nations due in part to underfunding. Experts says private pensions help, but women likely to have any money to invest because: /4
Many work part-time. Although 3.5 million women entered the workforce since 2012, 2/3 are working part-time. Globally part-time employment rates have fallen for women, but Japan saw an opposite trend, and “It’s not easy to save for retirement as a part-time worker.” /5
More than 40% of part-time women earn 1 million yen ($9,100) or less a year. Yanfei Zhou did a math that says there is a gap of $1.28 million in lifetime income between full-time women and women who switch from full-time to part-time at the age of 40. /6
Japan has social security and tax systems that give incentives for married women with low pay. Many companies also give employees a spousal allowance as long as their partner earns less than a certain amount, and that causes many women to limit their workload. /7
A woman who qualify for the spousal benefit, told me that she thinks, "less about retirement security and more about the current cost of living.” /8
And, above all, gender equality is just really bad in Japan. The pay gap hasn't seen any improvement, as women make only 73% as much as men. Only 28.4% of women say that they are treated equally at work, up only up only 0.2 % since 2016. /9
“It’s difficult to raise my hand for a new role," says a mother of two. Many women feel they are marginalized, with few opportunities for career growth and advancement. Many also told me that they can't work full-time because the husband doesn't help her in housework. /10
It's getting very long... please find more detail in the article. Thanks for reading!
日本女性の老後資金が寿命の伸びに追いつかない....この問題の背景を取材しました。
「男性は仕事、女性は家庭」といったジェンダーロールから抜け出せない社会制度、職場環境、そして私たち一人ひとりの考え方、それらすべてに大きな転換が求められていると感じました。 https://www.bloomberg.co.jp/news/articles/2020-01-11/Q35T21DWRGG401?srnd=cojp-v2
「男性は仕事、女性は家庭」といったジェンダーロールから抜け出せない社会制度、職場環境、そして私たち一人ひとりの考え方、それらすべてに大きな転換が求められていると感じました。 https://www.bloomberg.co.jp/news/articles/2020-01-11/Q35T21DWRGG401?srnd=cojp-v2
Updating the thread with my analysis on Former Japanese PM @AbeShinzo's Womenomics https://twitter.com/MarikaKatanuma/status/1308288831745974275?s=20
