Japan has unveiled a new initiative aimed at improving the work-life balance of the country's salarymen by encouraging them to take time off to care for their children. Under the new provision, employees with children under the age of three will be allowed a shorter workday, while fathers of newborns will be allowed to take paternity leave. Despite fears that taking time off may hurt their careers, a growing number of Japanese salarymen are taking advantage of the program, part of a larger effort to increase Japan's low birthrate.
See "Japan urges more dads to swap desks for diapers", Benjamin Shatil, The Washington Post, June 29, 2010