Japanese couple apologise for getting pregnant ‘before their turn’ and ‘selfishly’ breaking company rules

Woman berated by managers at childcare company in Aichi prefecture

Last year, the country came 114th out of 144 countries in the World Economic Forum’s global gender equality rankings (AFP/Getty)

A Japanese woman has been reprimanded for getting pregnant before it was her “turn” and “selfishly” breaking her employer’s rules.

The woman, who has not been named, was working for a private childcare centre in Aichi prefecture in Japan.

Her husband, 28, wrote an open letter to the Japanese newspaper Mainichi Shimbun saying his wife felt “glum” and “anxious” about her pregnancy, saying her company dictated when female employees were allowed to conceive.

“The director at the child-care centre where she works had determined the order in which workers could get married or pregnant, and apparently there was an unspoken rule that one must not take their ‘turn’ before a senior staff member,” he wrote.

“Childcare providers sacrifice their own children to care for the children of others.

“It is a noble profession that nurtures children who will forge the future of this country.

“I respect my wife for her commitment to her profession, and continue to encourage her.

“The conditions of those working to nurture and care for children are evidence of a backward country.”

Although the couple apologised to the company director, the husband said his wife had been berated by senior staff.

He wrote: “The director grudgingly accepted our apology, but since the next day, has been chiding my wife with harsh words, such as, ‘How could you so selfishly break the rules?’”

The husband added: “Who benefits from having their ‘turn’ to have children dictated, and following those rules?”

Japanese journalist Toko Shirakawa told the newspaper that companies where women make up the majority of the staff often dictate the order in which workers can get pregnant.

Speaking to Mainichi Shimbun, a 26-year-old woman from Mitaka, a suburb of Tokyo, said she was told by a supervisor she would only be allowed to get pregnant when she was around 35 years old.

Japan consistently ranks low among developed states on issues of gender equality.

Last year, Japan came 114th out of 144 countries in the World Economic Forum’s global gender equality rankings, which measures equality by analysing women’s participation rates in politics, education, the economy and health.

According to data published by The Economist in 2017, Japanese women earn 25.9 per cent less than men, which was the second-highest pay gap among the 29 countries analysed.