The Reentry of Women into the Labor Force - Accommodating Changes in the Labor Supply Situation to Ease the Transition -

Emiko Takeishi

Summary

In Japan， the women's labor force participation rate curve--which plots participation rates by age--maintains a persistent M-shape. In few other industrialized nations is the dip so persistent or clearly visible. Given the preference among a large proportion of women to temporarily leave the work force and pursue a family life， the curve shows little sign of shifting in the near future toward the reverse U-shape found in Sweden and the U.S.
Furthermore， the type of employment varies greatly by age group. Younger women tend to be regular employees working in white collar jobs at medium and large companies. On the other hand， middle-aged and older women are concentrated in part-time or blue collar jobs， and employed at small companies， family businesses， or self-employed. Thus the two peaks of the M-curve reveal substantial qualititative differences， indicating a significant discontinuity in work careers before and after leaving the work force.
How do highly educated， career oriented women view the situation? Career patterns of women with higher education tend to diverge into two poles: those who work continuously， and those who quit work for marriage and child raising. Few of them return to work after once quitting. The positive correlation generally seen in foreign countries between education and labor force participation rate among women cannot be comfirmed in Japan. Since the present labor market for educated， career oriented women is not very favorable， their desire to reenter the labor force is most likely being affected to a significant degree. As more highly educated women with extensive work experience in specialized and key positions seek to reenter the labor market， the mismatch between their qualifications and available job openings is expected to widen.
Approximately half of the companies we surveyed have a policy of actively hiring mid-career women. However， based the type of work and qualifications emphasized， hiring is clearly not based on an evaluation of work experience and specialized knowledge. Yet there are some companies that have hired employees in career-type specialized jobs. These companies do consider the work experience and specialized knowledge of applicants， and tend to have a higher regard for mid-career women.
On the other hand， women who desire to work again， particularly career oriented women with a junior college or higher level of education， seek to pursue both a work and family life， while at the same time harboring a strong desire to make full use of their previous experience and ability. In particular， women with a four-year college education and those who in the past have worked in specialized or technical positions are strongly inclined to find a job that draws on their experience and specialized knowledge.
Our analysis found a large gap between the employment status of women re-entering the labor force and the type of work desired by women with higher education. Unless the labor market for women returming to work is improved--particularly with regard to jobs thar meet the needs of women with higher education--the reserve labor pool of educated women， which is expected to grow， will be wasted. If a planned， continuous career cannot be achieved expect by staying employed， women's career choices will be severely limited. To make full use of women with higher education， who are now confronted with the choice of either pursuing work or family life， the labor market must be changed to allow women to return to work. Attracting women back into the labor force is becoming increasingly important today as changes in the structure of industry and employment require quick responses. In this sense as well， the issue of whether women returning to the labor force can use their ability is a major issue for society at large.