"She Said She Was Raising a Child, but Was Job-Hunting?"... Female Employees Resigning After Parental Leave

Story of Woman on Parental Leave Sparks Debate on Yomiuri Submission Board
Preparing for a Career Change During Parental Leave... Plans to Resign and Switch Jobs After Leave Ends
Criticism Floods In: "System Abuse," "Selfish Behavior," "Harms Those

In Japan, there is an ongoing debate regarding women who engage in job-hunting during parental leave and choose to change jobs without returning to their original workplace.

On December 15 (local time), a post by a woman identified as Ms. A, who decided to resign, became a hot topic on the user submission site operated by the Yomiuri Shimbun. Ms. A stated that although she had no complaints about her current company's welfare system, she decided to switch careers. She has been studying skills that would help her career change during her parental leave. With six months remaining until her leave ends, she plans to find a new job during this period. While Ms. A described her resignation as "already decided," she also shared several concerns, noting that although there are no legal issues, she worries about the following: parental leave is a system premised on returning to work; she feels guilty toward her company, which did not hire a replacement and waited for her; she is concerned that if cases like hers increase, it may become more difficult for future employees to take parental leave; and she wonders whether her actions might leave a negative impression in interviews at her next company.

The post received more than 80 comments, many of which were critical. The "surprised" reaction button was clicked over 1,800 times. One user commented, "To be honest, my impression is that you lack morals, are selfish, and are blocking the path for women in the future. This is because parental leave is a system based on the premise of returning to work, and in the past, many women had to give up their careers because such systems did not exist." Other users criticized her actions, saying, "To resign as if running away after just taking parental leave," "Do you really believe it's fine to exercise your rights by receiving the full parental leave benefits and then quitting?" and "If cases of people taking parental leave and not returning increase, it will seriously harm those who want to follow the rules and take leave properly."

Image to Aid Article Understanding

On the other hand, there were also accounts from people who had actually resigned without returning after parental leave. One user shared, "I worked at a company where it was difficult to raise a child, and there was a practice of deliberately transferring female employees with children to departments requiring mandatory weekend and holiday shifts, where shortened working hours were not possible, effectively forcing them to resign voluntarily." The user added, "It's actually easier to look for a new job during parental leave because you have more time. These days, there are also many online interviews."

The utilization rate of parental leave has been steadily increasing. According to data compiled in May 2023 by a research group under the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the percentage of women who maintained their jobs by using parental leave before and after the birth of their first child rose significantly from 11.2% in 1995-1999 to 42.6% in 2015-2019. While there are differences depending on employment type-74.7% for regular employees and 23.6% for dispatch or part-time workers-the number of women using parental leave is clearly on the rise.

Mana Yamatani, a researcher at the 21st Century Occupational Foundation and an expert on women's labor issues, told the Yomiuri Shimbun, "It is true that this places a burden on the company, colleagues, and junior employees. The problem may be that the company was not a workplace one would want to return to, given that she had no complaints about welfare but was dissatisfied with the work itself." Regarding criticism of "system abuse," she said, "While it may be a loss for the company, this woman intends to continue working at another company. From a societal perspective, she can still contribute sufficiently in the future." She added, "If the environment does not allow for balancing parenting and a career, it is necessary to change it for the sake of those who remain and for future generations."