Paternity Leave for Creating Opportunities for a Better Society
President Nakai gives the opening address
Since September 2018, the Sekisui House Group has been promoting the full use of at least one month of paternity leave as a part of our efforts to bring greater happiness to our employees and their families. Since 2019, we have commemorated September 19 as Think About Childcare Leave Day, and have been implementing the IKUKYU.PJT project to promote greater awareness of paternity leave in industry, government, and academia. This year marks the fifth year of the Paternity Leave Forum, held annually as part of the project. At this forum, we will look back on the changes surrounding paternity leave based on the results of surveys conducted over the past five years, and examine new ideas on what is needed to make society a place where paternity leave is commonplace.
On the occasion of the Paternity Leave Forum 2023, President Nakai spoke about his experiences in Sweden, which sparked the Sekisui House Group’s efforts to promote paternity leave, as well as changes in the environment surrounding paternity leave over the past five years.
The Sekisui House Group’s commitment to paternity leave was started as a result of my business trip to Sweden in 2018. I was shocked to see that the majority of people pushing strollers in a residential area in the suburbs of Stockholm were men, and that is when I began to learn about Swedish society and paternity leave. We hope to promote the full use of leave by all eligible employees in the Sekisui House Group and share our knowledge and data to help create diverse working styles and a better society.
Discussions and interest in paternity leave have gradually increased since it became mandatory for national public employees to take at least one month of leave as a general rule in 2019. In April 2022, the revised Child Care and Caregiver Leave Act came into effect, and in October, the new Postpartum Paternity Leave system began. From April 2023, it became mandatory for large companies to publicize their rates of men taking paternity leave. The rate of men taking paternity leave in FY2022 announced by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare was 17.13%, and in the most recent survey, the rate for companies that were required to publicize this information was 46.2%, showing a rapid increase.
The IKUKYU.PJT project to promote greater awareness of paternity leave has been conducted by our group as a part of our vision to create a world where it is commonplace for men to take paternity leave. Last year, 81 companies and organizations participated in the project, and this year, our membership grew even more to 119 participating companies and organizations. Also, this fiscal year, we created a web-based video depicting the changes in people’s lifestyles and working styles from the 1960s to the present: “Showa, Heisei, Reiwa: Fatherhood in the Past and in the Future #ThinkAboutChildcareLeaveDay” (in Japanese). What can we do for our children, who are our treasures of the future? This message video presents these issues. Drawing on these issues, we would like to think together with you about the latest trends to promote use of paternity leave, as well as new working styles and family life.
Project website “IKUKYU.PJT”
Web-based video “Showa, Heisei, Reiwa: Fatherhood in the Past and in the Future #ThinkAboutChildcareLeaveDay”
Introduction of Changes in Attitudes and Current State of Paternity Leave
2023 White Paper on Paternity Leave and 2023 Paternity Leave Project
Miwa Yamada, Executive Officer and Head of the Diversity and Inclusion Promotion Department
Miwa Yamada, Executive Officer and Head of the Diversity and Inclusion Promotion Department, gave a presentation on the group’s initiatives on paternity leave, introduced the 2023 White Paper on Paternity Leave, and outlined the 2023 Paternity Leave Project that is currently being implemented.
The following is an overview of our Sekisui House Group’s paternity leave program. The program is available to all group employees with children under 3 years of age. Sekisui House adopted the program in September 2018, and the program was expanded to other Sekisui House Group companies in August 2019. The main features of the program are that employees can fully take at least one month of childcare leave, the first month of leave is paid, and the leave can be taken in up to four blocks. Also, although the law amendment in October 2022 led to the start of the Postpartum Paternity Leave system, Sekisui House had already expanded its own system a year and a half earlier, in April 2021, when it began offering its Childcare Leave at Birth program, which allows for more flexible use of the leave.
The first step in taking paternity leave is to prepare a Family Meeting Sheet. This is a tool for family members to discuss when and why they want to take paternity leave, and how to divide detailed roles in housework and childcare, currently, during, and after paternity leave. We believe that family communication leads to meaningful paternity leave and family happiness. As of the end of August 2023, all 1,778 eligible employees who had reached the deadline for taking leave had completed at least one month of paternity leave, maintaining a 100% usage rate since the system was launched.
In addition, as part of our efforts to promote paternity leave, since September 2019, we have been holding paternity leave forums and publishing white papers on paternity leave. Since the revision of the law last year, there has been growing momentum nationwide for taking paternity leave, and this year we are developing a project that involves everyone more than ever before. Also, our initiatives for society are expanding, with our employees who have taken paternity leave sharing their experiences at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and speaking at a seminar on gender equality, which was a joint project between Japan and the EU. Overseas, we were honored as a company that promotes gender equality and social change through partnerships with other companies and organizations.
Actual Number of People Taking Paternity Leave Has Grown Greatly Over the Past Five Years
The 2023 White Paper on Paternity Leave, along with the results of this survey, looks at the changes in the actual status of men taking paternity leave over the past five years. The percentage of men taking paternity leave has increased approximately 2.5-fold over the past five years, from 9.6% to 22.4%, and the number of days taken has increased approximately 10-fold, from 2.4 days to 23.41 days. Also, 69.9% of men want to take paternity leave, an increase of about 10 points over the past five years. The percentage of women who want their partners to take childcare leave was 64.7%, an increase of about 15 points, both reaching all-time highs.
Workplace Environment Also Encourages Men to Take Paternity Leave
The percentage of respondents who answered that “there are rules and systems in place for men to take paternity leave at the workplace,” increased approximately 5 points over the past five years to 42.1%. The percentage of respondents who answered that “the workplace has an atmosphere that makes it difficult for men to take paternity leave” decreased by about 5 points to 22.2%, suggesting that the workplace environment is gradually improving. Also, 70.2% of men who took paternity leave expressed “anxiety” when they took the leave, a drop of approximately 7 points over the past five years. As workplace rules and systems for men taking paternity leave have been established and a culture conducive to taking such leave has been created, the culture that once made it difficult for men to take leave has improved, which appears to have led to reduced anxiety.
General Employees Welcome Men Taking Paternity Leave
The percentage of managers who agreed with men taking paternity leave was 80.3%, an increase of approximately 2 points from the previous year. Furthermore, 76.8% of managers answered that men should be encouraged to take paternity leave, an increase of about 5.5 points. Among general employees, 86.6% agreed with taking paternity leave and 77.4% agreed that men should be encouraged to take paternity leave. These results indicate that they welcome men taking paternity leave more than managers.
Encouraging Men to Take Paternity Leave for Changing the Mindset of Our Company’s Employees
When we asked our employees if they felt a change in the corporate culture after the start of the 100% paternity leave usage initiative, 74.9% responded that they did indeed feel a change in the corporate culture. This is approximately 1.8 times higher than the general employees surveyed in the White Paper on Paternity Leave, indicating that our group employees feel our corporate culture has shifted even more dramatically. We also found that encouraging the taking of paternity leave and the increase in the number of men taking paternity leave have led them to think about their own working styles and lifestyles, and to be more considerate of those around them. We believe that these results reflect the fact that we have had a constant focus on promoting use of paternity leave over the past five years.
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Panel Discussion
Topic: How to Make Paternity Leave a Normal Part of Society
The encouragement of paternity leave use has been progressing through the support of legal reforms and the efforts of many companies and organizations. However, in order to achieve the government’s goal of 30% by 2025, it is still necessary to increase the momentum in society as a whole. In this panel discussion, we would like to provide the opportunity to think about the present and future of paternity leave by reviewing the history of paternity leave in Japan. In this session, entitled “How to Make Paternity Leave a Normal Part of Society,” we will explore ways on how to promote paternity leave.
Panel discussion
(From left)
Moderator:
Renge Jibu, Journalist and Associate Professor at Institute for Liberal Arts, Tokyo Institute of Technology
Panelists:
Hideki Nakazato, Professor, Faculty of Letters, Konan University
Tetsuya Ando, Representative Director and Founder of the NPO Fathering Japan
Yoshihiro Nakai, President & CEO of Sekisui House, Ltd.
The Environment Surrounding Paternity Leave Has Changed due to Company Initiatives
Jibu This year marks the fifth year of the IKUKYU.PJT paternity leave project. Over the past five years, I believe that the attitudes in Japanese society about paternity leave have changed considerably. What kind of changes and responses do you feel have occurred at Sekisui House, which is a leading company in promoting paternity leave?
Nakai There were some issues when we first adopted the paternity leave program, but now it is nearly fully ingrained into our culture. Whenever I visit any of our branches nationwide, I hear from men that they have taken paternity leave, and I can tell that this program has become commonplace among our employees. Various derivative effects have also emerged, such as the creation of stronger teamwork and the opportunity to think about lifestyles. What pleases me most is that productivity has not declined over the past five years.
Jibu At the university where I work, a male employee of Sekisui House who took paternity leave came to talk about his experience and how his working style and lifestyle changed. I feel that this kind of initiative can change the accepted norms of working styles for the younger generation.
Ando Five years ago, I was quite surprised when I heard that Sekisui House was going to start its own paternity leave program. I thought it would have a huge impact on Japanese society that such a well-known company would encourage men to take one month of paternity leave. I was asked by Sekisui House to speak to their employees about the benefits of childcare leave, and I was impressed by their very positive response. When I heard that 100% of the employees had taken the leave within the year of its introduction, I was convinced that this would really turn the tide.
Jibu The 2023 White Paper on Paternity Leave also showed that over the past five years, the rate and number of days taken for paternity leave have increased, while anxiety about taking such leave has decreased. I feel that these figures also show that Japanese society is changing. A recently released survey by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) on paternity leave showed that the usage rate is 17.13%, a gap of about 7 percentage points compared to the 24.4% rate in the White Paper on Paternity Leave.
Nakazato The MHLW figure is the percentage of men whose children were born in the year up to September two years ago who started childcare leave by October 1 of last year. The figure in the White Paper on Paternity Leave includes those who had children of elementary school age or younger living with them as of June of this year, so the figures also include those who had children last year and this year. In other words, the White Paper on Paternity Leave includes trends for a generation that is almost two years younger than that surveyed by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
Jibu The survey results in the White Paper on Paternity Leave show that the effects of last year’s legal revisions are already becoming apparent.
Nakazato I believe that the figures are truly an early indicator of the numbers that will appear in next year’s Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare survey, which are expected to show an increase.
Ando In the IkuBoss Project being implemented by Fathering Japan, Sekisui House representatives have been talking about their initiatives within the company. I believe that this attitude of learning and adopting measures for improvement has been observed at other companies as well, and this background may also be observed in the changes in the figures over the past five years.
Accepted Norms Are Evolving with the Changing Times
Jibu As a sociologist, Mr. Nakazato has been researching paternity leave. This time, you supervised the web video “Showa, Heisei, Reiwa: Fatherhood in the Past and in the Future #ThinkAboutChildcareLeaveDay.”
Nakazato There are various forms of families in each era, and changes do not occur all at once just because the times change. We used statistical research to determine what was considered normal in each era, and provided the information to the video creators. We also focused on the changes in forms of families before and after the period of rapid economic growth in the 1960s. Until the first half of the rapid economic growth period, everyone in the community was involved in raising children, including the father, and the mother worked in the store or was engaged in farm work. This way of life is also depicted in an easy-to-understand manner.
Jibu The scene where the father interacts with his child for a moment provides a clear contrast with the gender role divisions that would develop later.
Nakazato In the 1970s, the nuclear family became the norm, with men working in companies and factories and women staying home to raise the children. Even after the Equal Employment Act was enacted in 1985, the idea that women should resign after giving birth and concentrate on child rearing continued for a long time. Rather, it was the 1980s that saw the start of the economic bubble, where men were busy with work and entertaining clients, and fathers were absent from the home. The 2000s saw the “Ikumen” boom (Ikumen = fathers who are actively involved in childcare), and the 2010s saw an increase in the number of mothers who continued to work. Even so, the awareness of fathers taking paternity leave was still not widespread.
Nakai As we entered a period of high economic growth, the forms of families changed dramatically. This is not a judgment of whether it was good or bad, it was just the way of the times. However, since then, Japanese society has entered a period of maturity, and we have entered a completely different phase in terms of how we perceive the desirable ways of working and relating to family. What is important in any era is how to consider the happiness of children, who are our treasures of the future. Without that as the foundation, I believe that the economy will not be able to survive.
Nakazato When supervising the video, I placed particular emphasis on the way the 2020s are depicted. With the increase in telecommuting due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are now seeing men taking on the responsibility of raising children alone while women work outside the home. It is truly an image of the reversal of the roles of fathers and mothers from the 1970s. By showing these changes of the times, we believe that the final image of a father, mother, and child walking together will have significant meaning for viewers.
Jibu I felt that this video incorporated the idea that the definition of happiness changes with the times.
Nakazato As shown in the data from the White Paper on Paternity Leave, men’s willingness to take paternity leave is also increasing. However, there are still many who say they are not willing to do so. Their salary will be reduced, it will cause inconvenience to others, and they don’t understand why it is necessary. I think it is necessary for supervisors, coworkers, and partners to give men who feel this way more meaning to their decision to take paternity leave.
Changing the Corporate Mindset on Paternity Leave and Focusing on Expanding Initiatives
Jibu Since the enactment of the revised Child Care and Caregiver Leave Act, I feel that corporate initiatives for paternity leave are gaining wider traction. Mr. Ando, you have been closely observing the actions of various companies, what kind of changes are you noticing?
Ando Three years ago, after the bill was passed by the House of Representatives, we were inundated with inquiries and training requests from companies. Among them, interest in Sekisui House’s paternity leave program was very high. I feel that it’s not only that men are taking paternity leave, but it’s also a shifting awareness by managers of the advantages of not losing productivity and advancing progress in reforming working styles.
Jibu In the case of Sekisui House, is the fact that President Nakai has taken the initiative in implementing these measures also persuasive?
Ando Yes, that’s right. We always say that the most important thing is the level of commitment from the top.
Jibu In a joint project between Japan and the EU on gender equality, the case of Sekisui House was presented, where men’s participation in housework and childcare led to gender equality and further adoption by various companies, and some lively discussions were held. I feel that it became clear that the current shift in Japan is a trend that is attracting global attention.
Ando More than 10 companies that are members of the alliance of IkuBoss companies sponsored by Fathering Japan have established systems for providing one-month paid leave that are similar to Sekisui House’s system. The rate of men taking paternity leave seems to be increasing in companies that regularly conduct IkuBoss training and training for managers, as well as those that conduct both in-house parenting classes and training for managers for changing the mindset of those involved. Recently, there has also been a movement to provide support money to those who do not take childcare leave in response to the problem of work being shifted to other members of the company when they take childcare leave.
Jibu Do you mean that you are taking into consideration the aspect of fairness?
Ando The same situation is likely to occur in the coming era of large-scale nursing care. Rather than solving the problem with money, I think it is necessary to build a relationship where people can support each other with a sense of mutual respect.
Paternity Leave as a Stepping Stone for Realizing a Society Where Children Are Happy
Jibu What do you think is the most important thing that companies should do to make paternity leave the norm in society, which is our key focus?
Nakai I am sure that this issue is a particular problem for small- and medium-sized companies. Rather than simply imitating other companies, I think it would be better if each company could come up with and implement a system that is best suited to its size and type of industry. In the case of the Sekisui House Group, when we launched our system, we implemented it at Sekisui House only and did not enforce it at group companies. This was because we were concerned that the same system would not work well because of differences in working styles and job tasks. After a while, some of the group companies expressed interest in adopting the system, so we are now implementing it throughout the group. The important thing is to think about what kind of system is best for children to be happy. I don’t think it is necessary to focus solely on paternity leave.
Ando To increase the rate of employees taking childcare leave, the first step is to raise the awareness of those involved. Instead of just saying, “I’ll take the leave because the company says I should,” they need to realize for themselves the joys of fatherhood. Furthermore, it is important not only to raise the awareness of the generation of managers, but also to focus on how to change the previous generation’s style of work. If there is a commitment at the top, change will eventually come.
Nakazato I believe that since the 1990s, Japanese society has shifted from the previous style in which the company takes care of the whole family to the idea that it is better to avoid getting too involved in the private life of employees. Conversely, in Europe, the U.S., and foreign-affiliated companies, there has been a movement to provide opportunities to invite family members to the workplace and to have one-on-one meetings with supervisors to discuss working styles and life planning. In order for society to become one in which paternity leave is the norm, I believe that this type of change is also required.
Jibu It is also important for each individual to properly confront the question of what he or she wants to do with his or her life.
Nakazato There are actual societies in which paternity leave has become the norm. In Scandinavia, including Sweden, where President Nakai visited, and in Germany, where I conducted my own research, I felt that the presence of fathers during the workday was extremely significant. In Japan, too, fathers should be more widely recognized not just as helpers in child-rearing but prime caregivers. At the same time, I think it will become increasingly necessary to raise awareness that women who have children can also hold equal jobs to men.
Jibu In closing, President Nakai, could you please give us a final message?
Nakai I believe that a company becomes stronger when it has more autonomous employees. An autonomous employee is someone who can think carefully not only about work, but also about their family and their own life as a parent. The more autonomous employees we have, the more ideas will be created. I believe that this will lead to greater development of the company and make it a company that grows spontaneously. Paternity leave is a system that can be easily utilized as a first step in this direction. I hope that everyone will take a positive approach to it.
