Family

I've known in the back of my subconscious mind that Japan had a declining birthrate. Going into the video, I already had some ideas as to what might have been causing the decline. The main reason it seems is long work hours with inflexible schedules lead to less time to even raise a family (apparently the blame is also placed on husbands but I digress). This reminded me of the current "crisis" in the United States as well with how according to statistics, fewer and fewer people want to start families. For some of the same reasons too, everyone needs to work to make up for the suddenly high cost of living and the seemingly small wages. There are other reasons for the declining birth rate (not just in the U.S. I think but worldwide perhaps?) but that's an entirely different conversation and maybe slightly controversial so I won't touch upon it here. I did find the fact that some offices in Japan are trying to allow a more flexible schedule and some find this method "too lax" which makes me think just how hard people are meant to work and for what pay. The strive for daycares is a good start as well, as it gives some alternative to parents who decide they both would like to work.