As Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pushes for labor reforms, hopes are growing that it may alter the country's deep-rooted culture of overwork and nudge more workers toward striking the right work-life balance.
The recent start of Premium Friday, an initiative led by the government and the private sector, is symbolic of Abe's drive. It encourages employees to finish work earlier than usual on the last Friday of each month and to increase consumption — a soft spot in the deflation-hit economy.
Whether it will bear fruit remains to be seen. Changing the mindset of Japanese workers, and their habit of putting in long work hours, will be a critical and formidable challenge for Japan, according to economists.