Overview
- Ministry data show 21.3% of married women with children experienced a career break in 2025, down 1.4 points year over year to the lowest since 2014, with 885,000 women out as of April.
- The employment rate rose to 67.3% for married women and 64.3% for mothers with children under 18, both record highs, with gains across families of different sizes and ages of children.
- Across the first half, 1.105 million married women were classified as career‑interrupted, equal to 14.9% of married women, while 42.1% of those out of work reported gaps lasting at least a decade.
- Banks and large employers introduced retention measures including multi‑year unpaid child‑rearing leave with rehire guarantees, baby bonuses, flexible work, and expanded parental leave, with early data showing women’s average banking tenure at 14.5 years versus 15.4 for men.
- Progress coexists with structural gaps, including the OECD’s widest gender pay gap at 33.7%, while a U.S. analysis found women aged 25–44 caring for children under five saw labor‑force participation fall nearly 3% in early 2025 tied to strict return‑to‑office policies.