Women in the Japanese department store industry

The current theoretical framework of Japanese work patterns has evolved through extensive analyses of male interactions in Japan's permanent employment system. Against the background of this male-oriented employment system with limited career opportunities for women, Japan's Equal Employment Opportunity Law (EEOL) was passed in 1985 and went into effect April 1, 1986. This paper explores the feelings, values, and goals of individual female department store employees interviewed during this period. Many of these women feared that career success would threaten their prospects of marrying or parenting a child. Other findings presented here suggest that work attitudes and relationships between female colleagues may vary considerably from the commonly accepted interpretations of Japan's industrial relations. Notably, women seem to have a weaker concept of sempai-kohai (junior-senior) relationships, and lack of close identification with other company members entering in the same year characteristically attributed to Japanese company employees.