The coronavirus pandemic has prompted Japan Inc. to embrace more flexible work styles and has also changed how employees see their jobs.
Working remotely from home and attending online meetings have become important methods in the bid to reduce human contact and infection risks.
The forced transition to a new way of working coincided with Japan's embryonic efforts in recent years to reshape work in a country known for its rigid corporate culture and excessive office hours. And recently, female participation in the labor market, especially for women in their 30s and 40s, has been on the rise.