Japan's Birthrate Doubles After This Company Banned Long-Hours At Work

Japan has long been known for a work culture in which grueling hours at the office-often followed by evenings spent eating and drinking with work colleagues-make having a family challenging, especially for female workers.

When Masahiro Okafuji became chief executive officer of Itochu Corp. in 2010, he made improving productivity a top priority so the company could compete against bigger rivals in Japan. His approach was counterintuitive. Working in the office after 8 p.m. would be banned, and there would be no more overtime-with rare exceptions. Security guards and human resources staff would scout Itochu's office building in Tokyo, telling people to go home. Those clinging to their desk were told to come in early the next day to get their work done-and get paid extra.

The tough love worked. A decade later, the company-whose businesses range from the FamilyMart convenience store chain to metals trading-reported a more than fivefold jump in profit per employee from 2010 to 2021 as surging commodities prices and a weak yen buoyed its bottom line. What also changed, to the surprise of Itochu's management, is that more female employees took maternity leave, had kids and came back to work.

"We set out to boost productivity but had no idea it would have an impact on the birthrate," says Fumihiko Kobayashi, Itochu's executive vice president.