Japan nonprofit to hold seminar to prevent unwanted job leaves due to children’s truancy

UTSUNOMIYA — A nonprofit organization here will offer an online seminar for companies on how to support employees who are struggling with their children’s truancy and how to prevent them from needing to take leave from work or resign.

As truant children, or those who do not attend school for a period of time other than due to illness or economic reasons, become more numerous in Japan, their parents are being forced to leave the workforce in an emerging social issue. The Utsunomiya-based nonprofit group Key Design will work with companies to help solve it.

In February of this year, the nonprofit surveyed approximately 4,300 registered users of the “Okasan no Hokenshitsu” consultation service for parents on the Line free messaging app, which started in 2020.

The results showed that one in five parents had taken a leave of absence or resigned from their workplace due to their children not attending school, and 90% of respondents were experiencing emotional instability.

Some of those who actually left their jobs commented candidly, “I had to leave early or miss work more and more due to dealing with my child, and it became hard for me to explain why to the workplace,” and, “I felt sorry to the workplace because I could not proceed with my work as I wanted, and I spent time feeling guilty about leaving my child at home alone.” They both reportedly said that the work environment and job duties were good, and that for financial reasons, they did not want to quit, but they resigned to prioritize spending time with their children.

On the other hand, in some cases, having someone who understood their situation at work reduced their mental burden and helped them avoid an unwanted departure from their jobs.

Based on the survey results, the nonprofit decided to hold the seminar on Dec. 3 and 5 for companies on preventing employees from needing to leave their jobs due to their children’s truancy, in an effort to provide support for such parents at an early stage. At the event, the group’s president, Yuhei Dobashi, will explain “the background behind the increase in school absenteeism” and “how to support employees who are struggling with their children’s truancy.”

The seminar will be the same on both days, running from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., and is free of charge. Attendance is capped at 50 people for each session. For inquiries, contact Key Design at 080-1853-6296 or email [email protected].

(Japanese original by Manami Matsuzawa, Utsunomiya Bureau)