Real-life Examples

I gave birth to my child in October. I was planning to return to work in the April two years after my child turned 18 months old, but I was having trouble finding a nursery school... Fortunately, I was able to extend my childcare leave for another year, and so I could find a nursery school for my child and return to full-time work. I’m also really grateful for access to Financial Aid for Childcare, in which the company covers about 70% of the nursery school fees. And I can flexibly use the Hour-Based Annual Leave System to take time off if my child suddenly falls sick with a fever.

About the same time my wife fell pregnant, there were discussions about her promotion to Section Manager. We used the Nursery School Hunting Concierge service to quickly find a nursery school, so that my wife could return to work within a year after giving birth. We received information about nursery schools, and after my wife returned to work, I was also able to take the one-month paternity leave, Ikumen Leave, and focus on looking after my newborn child. Now my wife and I are able to successfully balance work with raising our child, by adjusting our working hours according to our work schedules.

After having surgery to treat my cancer, I returned to work while still receiving hospital treatment. My weekly appointment with my family doctor is on a Tuesday, and so I was able to return to work for only four days a week with a set day off on Tuesday. I’m also able to work from home when needed, so I can focus on my cancer treatment without disrupting my work.

I took Nursing Care Leave to look after my mother, who lives in our hometown. I took a total of two months leave, so I was able to apply for primary nursing care requirement authorization for my mother and be there for the at-home inspection, as well as complete the procedures for using nursing care services after we received authorization. I’m still able to regularly return to my hometown to visit my mother. I can take up to two weeks leave if necessary, so it gives me peace of mind to know I can be there for my mother when she needs me.

I had to leave work when my husband was posted overseas for his work for five years. Before I left, I registered for the Retiree Reinstatement Registration Program. After returning to Japan, I was able to receive preferential treatment for re-employment, and return to the job I love doing. Even though I had to pause my career for a while, I’m excited to keep developing it from here on.