Tokyo Adopts 4-Day Workweek to Encourage Women to Have More Kids

To address Japan's record-low fertility rate and support working mothers, Tokyo will implement a four-day workweek for its employees starting next year.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will implement a four-day workweek for its employees starting in April 2025, offering them three-day weekends and more family-friendly options, as reported by the Japan Times.

With Japan's fertility rate plummeting to a record-low of 1.2 — a fertility rate of 2.1 is needed for a stable population — in 2023, the government has increasingly sought ways to support families, CNN reported.

Due to the country's demanding work culture, new measures such as promoting paternity leave and offering child care solutions have been introduced across Japan, but the Tokyo government's four-day workweek marks one of the newest approaches.

More than 160,000 Tokyo Metropolitan Government employees will be able to take Fridays off with the new plan.

The policy is designed to help working parents — particularly women — better balance their careers with child-rearing duties. The initiative also includes a new system allowing parents with young children to reduce their working hours by up to two hours a day.

The success of this policy will depend on whether it leads to long-term cultural shifts in Japan's work environment.