Desperate Hunt for Day Care in Japan

[citzera]

By HIROKO TABUCHI
Published: February 26, 2013
TOKYO - Ayaka Okumura was barely pregnant when she began fretting over how she would hold on to the management job that would have been out of reach just a generation ago, when Japanese women were often relegated to dead-end “office lady” jobs pouring tea and greeting guests

Comments

[moldypotatochip]

I've lived and worked in Japan for five years. That being said, I don't have kids, so I've never had to deal with this firsthand.

I work at public schools, though, and when a teacher gets pregnant she works up til a certain point and then she is given about two years of leave for the baby. The job at the school will be saved for her until she comes back. That seems more than generous.

As for childcare shortages, I couldn't say, but Japanese early education is usually divided into two systems. There is the youchien system which is equal to preschool and kindergarden. It is a two year school prior to first grade in elementary. This system is designed for stay-at-home moms because it starts when the children are about four years old. The second system is called hoikuen which starts much younger. The hoikuen system is for babies and toddlers and these children stay at the hoikuen until the children enter first grade. So these two systems are not overlapping but rather two different options mothers can pick based on their needs.

I would think this article is referring more to the hoikuen system which would cater towards working mothers.

[katrinar]

two years is pretty much the standard in many european countries and Japan. unfortunately, the US is far behind on maternity leave. in canada, we get a year (which really isn't enough) and have similar problems unless the family lives in quebec (government subsidized daycare for all, $7 bucks a day, more moms in the working force generated 5 billion dollars over a decade).

my dear friend just came back from a stint in japan where because she was a mom when they went over, she just didn't work (though she could have). the daycare situation is tough enough but being a foreigner on top of that makes it damned near impossible.

we still live in an international society where in MANY cases (not all) women are forced not only to bear children, but take care of most chores, child rearing etc and then go back to work to support their families. it really sucks.

[belleweather]

Oh honey, please don't talk about how inadequate a year is. I would have KILLED for 6 WEEKS in my last pregnancy, not to mention the three months (unpaid) we get in the US, or a far more reasonable 6 months or a year.

In the US, there is plenty of care available, in that we're not hurting for spots, but the cost is $800-1500 per month, per kid in a middle-cost market. $800 will buy you about a full work-day of care from a private person in their home. A center or preschool with an educational curriculum and more oversight will cost more. Living on the coasts or in a big city? Cost more. I'd almost rather there were less spots available and more subsidies than to have real, quality childcare out of reach for financial reasons, if only because I'd feel less guilty.

(For what it's worth, my mister stays home with our three, because his income after taxes < daycare costs. We'll pay an enormous price for that once our kids are grown and he has to get back into the job market, but our choices were limited.)

[katrinar]

You can get part-time care in most cities in Canada for around 75-100 a day and full time care isn't much different. In my city, there are zero spots anywhere, and if you are lucky enough to find a spot, it is usually at a daycare that costs around 2000 per month, or more.

My husband had to quit his job, too. Is ended up working out better because he works shift now, and we found a babysitter part time (3 half days a week) for 50 per half day. Tis is affordable now because he is making enough money that we can afford it. When I go on my next mat leave, I'm hoping to work freelance on the side, because th Canadian government only pays 400a week for most women on leave(some less, never more). I rWork for one of the many organizations that don't top that up, so yeah, we get a year off, but it is usually only for a quarter of your salary.

[belleweather]

I have so many FEELINGS about childcare. We've moved out of the US for my job to a place where we can employ a nanny and even with the foreigner markup, it's still only about $450 a month... which is about 50% more than the prevailing local wage for a nanny. I've been putting off doing it though, because I feel like it's almost exploitation to have someone look after my baby while my husband goes to school (he's in an online masters program) and NOT have to like, cut corners and eat ramen and lentils in order to afford it. The idea that I can afford like, cable TV and the occasional latte AND safe, responsible, caring childcare for my kids is totally mind-blowing to me. That's pretty sad.