Abstract
The objectives of this paper are to point out problems in Japanese “family-friendly” companies by investigating employees' work-life balance, and to discuss the influence of the two-track employment management system on “family-friendly” and gender-equal policies. Previous studies have not paid sufficient attention to issues relating to work-life balance. This study interviewed eight female employees of a bank, including some who had left the firm (“family-friendly” company). The survey was conducted from January to August 2005. Three main conclusions are drawn from the results: (1) Employees in this company found the “family-friendly” policies not very supportive for achieving work-life balance. (2) “Family-friendly” policies offered neither male nor female employees enough time for family responsibilities. (3) The “family-friendly” policies, under the two-track employment management system, do not guarantee essential gender equality between men and women in the workplace. After demonstrating the above, this paper suggests two principal policy implications of these findings. Firstly, “family-friendly” companies should be family-friendly for both full-time and part-time employees. Secondly, we can safely say that “family-friendly” and gender-equal conditions in the workplace can not be achieved without abolishing indirect discrimination, such as the two-track employment management system.
