Go home and multiply

[shah269]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/01/26/canon.babies/index.html
TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Even before one reaches the front door of Canon's headquarters in Tokyo, one can sense the virtual stampede of employees pouring out of the building exactly at 5:30 p.m.


Japan's birth rate of 1.34 is below the level needed to maintain the country's population.

 In a country where 12-hour workdays are common, the electronics giant has taken to letting its employees leave early twice a week for a rather unusual reason: to encourage them to have more babies.

"Canon has a very strong birth planning program," says the company's spokesman Hiroshi Yoshinaga. "Sending workers home early to be with their families is a part of it."

Japan in the midst of an unprecedented recession, so corporations are being asked to work toward fixing another major problem: the country's low birthrate. Tell us what you think

At 1.34, the birthrate is well below the 2.0 needed to maintain Japan's population, according to the country's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

Keidanren, Japan's largest business group, with 1,300 major international corporations as members, has issued a plea to its members to let workers go home early to spend time with their families and help Japan with its pressing social problem. Watch more on this story

One reason for the low birth rate is the 12-hour workday. But there are several other factors compounding the problem -- among them, the high cost of living, and social rigidity toward women and parenting.

In addition, Japan's population is aging at a faster pace than any other country in the world.

Analysts say the world's second-largest economy faces its greatest threat from its own social problems, rather than outside forces. And the country desperately needs to make some fixes to its current social and work structures, sociologists say.


Canon says its 5:30 p.m. lights-out program is one simple step toward helping address the population problem. It also has an added benefit: Amid the global economic downturn the company can slash overtime across the board twice a week.

[Blunder]

Sending the employees home to collate and staple, hmm?

[shah269]

Going home to sharpen my pencil!

[Allan]

Why not just let up on office relationships, give them an extra hour lunch, and a free pass to a love hotel.

[cultureslayer]

Why not just let up on office relationships, give them an extra hour lunch, and a free pass to a love hotel.

  If they did that the boyfriend and I would be moving to Japan to work at Cannon.

[Mrs. DantesDame]

I'm sure there's another country in the world that could help them increase their population. The world already has too many people.  

[kevin_stevens]

I'm sure there's another country in the world that could help them increase their population. The world already has too many people.  

Care to name names?  

KeS

[Baz]

One of our provinces (Quebec) had a program that paid you to make babies. (They were worried about us English speaking people breeding the French out of them). I don't know if it is still in effect.

Birth rates are falling all over the place. I know even China is facing a problem of having the fastest aging workforce. I believe India is still breeding well though.

[Zerosum]

It's funny how only the delveloped countries have this problem.  Europeans, Americans, Japanese, etc.  It's due to education, ready access to birth control, and permissive socieital attitudes regarding sex and contracepton.  It's as if people who grew up with a high standard of living either a) want to have fun and don't want the responsiblility of children, b) have expectations for the child's life that they know they can't fulfill, or c) understand that 'more people = less resources per person' and choose not to procreate.  For whatever reason, we tend to limit our own populations.

Meanwhile people who live in hellholes like Mexico, Africa, India, etc. care not of such things.  They have less access to birth control, and they have an incentive to breed like crazy.  More kids = more people to work for the family and support you when you're old.  You have no real hopes or expectations for your childrens' lives.  Infant mortality is high, people live shorter lives... human life is worth subjectively less in your corner of the world.   And you're probably not educated or worldly enough to care about the additional strain on natural resources.  You live in shit conditions, that's all you know, so who cares if your local area is overpopulated... what, is it going to get shittier?  

[Jblk9695]

What ever happened to the "Nooner"  

Jerry

[shah269]

What ever happened to the "Nooner"  

Jerry

Well Jerry, thanks to years of PC in the worl place we can no longer have nooners!

[stefrrr]

Care to name names?  

KeS

Hell, the US has one family alone that could repopulate the country!

[cultureslayer]

Hell, the US has one family alone that could repopulate the country!

 

Oh snap!   Vajayjay: it's not a clown car.

[toddrod]

hasn't anyone ever seen those videos of the Japanese getting stuffed into the subway trains?!?! If I lived in Japan, I wouldn't want to have more kids. Japan is the last place that needs a big population. Heck, I get pissed when I have to drive in traffic, or when new condo complex is built nearby that I know will cause more traffic. I don't see any reason why any educated country would want or need an increase in population.

[DogBoy]

hasn't anyone ever seen those videos of the Japanese getting stuffed into the subway trains?!?! If I lived in Japan, I wouldn't want to have more kids. Japan is the last place that needs a big population. Heck, I get pissed when I have to drive in traffic, or when new condo complex is built nearby that I know will cause more traffic. I don't see any reason why any educated country would want or need an increase in population.

According to the article, Japan is more concerned with maintaining rather than increasing population. While decrease in population would seem desirable for quality of life or the environment, someone has to pay for the pensions/medicare/social security/ballooning deficit of the previous generation.

[HipGnosis]

Birth rates are falling all over the place. I know even China is facing a problem of having the fastest aging workforce. I believe India is still breeding well though.

Having seen Chinese and Indian women, I understand this completely.

[Baz]

Having seen Chinese and Indian women, I understand this completely.

I would be more than happy to help them maintain world domination.  

[shah269]

Having seen Chinese and Indian women, I understand this completely.

It's a well known fact that Japanese women do not put out.
I recall seeing a survey that indicated that they were perfectly happy getting the summer sausage once every 6 months.
And you thought you love life sucked!

[Baz]

It's a well known fact that Japanese women do not put out.
I recall seeing a survey that indicated that they were perfectly happy getting the summer sausage once every 6 months.
And you thought you love life sucked!

Ah but the article was probably researched in Japan.

I have had one or two Japanese women comment that size had everything to do with frequency.  

OK, now I hope I didn't start a "Mine is bigger" thread.

[Fourstring]

It's funny how only the delveloped countries have this problem...

What's that quote again?  

"Knowing your children will live to be adults is among the best forms of contraception in the world."

[jcs-thundercat]

In addition, Japan's population is aging at a faster pace than any other country in the world.

   I thought everyone aged at the same pace

-jcs

[Guy]

   I thought everyone aged at the same pace

-jcs

They age digitally instead of analog like everyone else.

[kevin_stevens]

   I thought everyone aged at the same pace

-jcs

Nope, reading that just took several years off my life.

KeS

[Blunder]

It's a well known fact that Japanese women do not put out.

Maybe it was just you.

[Baz]

 

[Mr Sunshine]

Ah but the article was probably researched in Japan.

I have had one or two Japanese women comment that size had everything to do with frequency.  

OK, now I hope I didn't start a "Mine is bigger" thread.

My experience in Japan says Japanese women love American men because they don't treat them like pieces of things and pay attention to them.

[Baz]

I hear that same logic from American women.  

Let's face it, they are never bloody happy!

[Mr Sunshine]

I hear that same logic from American women.  

Let's face it, they are never bloody happy!

Have you ever spent any time doing business in Japan?  I was there for 2.5 weeks and my liver still hurts.  

[shah269]

Maybe it was just you.

Asian Americans put out, but Asians......not so much.

[DogBoy]

Asian Americans put out, but Asians......not so much.

Isn't Iran in Asia? Does this include you Shah?  

[shah269]

Isn't Iran in Asia? Does this include you Shah?  

BINGO!
I keep telling  you guys, yeah they look good but STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM THOSE IRANIAN GIRLS THEY ARE FREAKING DANGEROUS!

[OmegaSix]

I spent a couple of my formative years bopping around SE Asia...

China,  (Well - Hong Kong), Thailand, Phillipines, Japan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia...

Well - at any rate - - LBFM's (especially the Phillipino variety) were hot, hawt, hot, and HOT!!!

But, not the Japanese girls.   They laughed and giggled a lot - but no actual givin' it up.

Got no joy in Sri Lanka, either - but then again - I don't remember trying.  

Little Thai girls got the nod for the best of the best.    They were lusty, and proud of it!

Of course, the easiest marks were also the most familiar - chubby little Australian girls...   They just threw themselves down....   Nice, mate.    All ya had to do was buy the young lady a drink and act like a gentleman - that was it.    
Any boys that actually wanted to pay attention to a GIRL in Australia was sure to have that attention responded to.  
Lonely life - being a girl in Australia...