The reflation campaign by the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2013 attracted many women to work. It has been reported that Abe is now planning to reduce tax benefits for spouses with limited earnings.
The country’s administration is currently reviewing rules, according to which 14 million married workers are allowed to earn as much as ¥1.03 million on a yearly basis tax-free. Following the removal of the measures – which cost an annual ¥600 billion in revenue – some female employees might be working longer hours and help in improving the shrinking job market in Japan. The chief economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management Co. in Tokyo, Akiyoshi Takumori said, “The traditional family structure where husbands go out to work and wives look after the home is crumbling”.
Takumori went on to say that the labor force is decreasing and there is an increasing need for immigrants or women to work. If there is no greater access to child-care facilities in the country, the move might be adding a new burden to families which have been affected by a 15-year slide in the cost of living, as well as the first consumption tax increase since 1997.
In 2013, the number of women employed increased by 470,000 to 27 million, which marked the biggest increase since 1991.
Photo Credits: The Atlantic
