It Really Is That Unequal in Japan - Building Gender Balanced Business

A culture of long workdays, along with pervasive discrimination, make Japan the *most unequal of all the rich countries * in the world, according to the UN, with many women stuck in low-pay, dead-end jobs because family obligations preclude the morning-to-midnight presence most companies consider obligatory for executives. More than half of all career-minded women quit by their early 30s. Japan bars discrimination, but the law is toothless, and even in those companies that make an effort to better treat and promote women, progress is limited.

New York Times International 06/08/07,
Career Women in Japan Find Blocked Path, Despite equal Opportunity Law