Fukushima firms seek ways to encourage marriages

It used to be a common practice for employees at Japanese companies to meet their future spouses through introductions from their bosses, who would often serve as matchmakers and then have a role at the couple's wedding.

Such familiar scenes, however, are now a thing of the past.

With increasing public awareness of diversity and compliance, it has become more difficult for companies to get involved in employees’ private lives.

However, one supermarket chain operator in Fukushima Prefecture is going all out to support its employees in forming families by offering various benefits, arguing that it is a corporate responsibility to tackle the nation’s chronically low birth rate.

The Iwaki-based company, Maruto Group Holdings, revised its internal rules in 2019, raising monthly allowances for spouses and children, as well as introducing a special allowance of ¥100,000 each to full-time employees who get married.

It also revamped its housing support, under which a married couple — if both are full-time employees with the group — can choose to live in company housing units for free until the age of 34. The goal is to help them save money during that period so they can eventually purchase their own home and settle down while continuing to work for the company. So far, three couples have taken advantage of the system.

“For the future of our business and communities, the falling birth rate is a critical issue that we must deal with as our corporate responsibility,” said Takaaki Nezu, the 58-year-old executive director of Maruto Group.

Even before the 2019 reforms, Maruto Group had established company-run child care facilities at two locations in Iwaki, each accommodating up to 19 children.

Employees have responded positively to such benefits.

“If there’s a vacancy, I’d like to move into the company housing,” one employee said.

“It’s nice that the company offers support for the younger generation,” said another.

The moves come amid a growing sense of urgency about Japan’s shrinking population. In addition to recruiting young workers from other companies and raising starting salaries to attract new hires, Maruto Group has been taking in Vietnamese technical trainees every year.

However, hiring has become difficult in recent years as large corporations, especially those in metropolitan areas, have been aggressively raising wages, making it harder for a regional company like Maruto to compete on salaries amid rising material and operational costs. A shrinking number of high school graduates seeking employment is adding to its hardships.

Nezu said that he often used to be invited to the weddings of younger employees, but the custom changed about 15 years ago.

“Even if employees get married, it’s rare for us to be invited anymore,” he said.

Despite changing personal relationships at the workplace, Nezu said the company, as a retail business closely tied to local communities, cannot be indifferent to the falling population in the region.

“Whether to marry or not is entirely a personal choice,” Nezu stressed. But at the same time, the company is seeking ways to help its unmarried employees, who make up about half of its full-time workforce, build families and continue supporting both the company and communities, he said.

“Creating a workplace where employees can work without anxiety, even after marriage or having children, will lead to retaining workers and stable management.”

Maruto Group has around 4,000 employees, including part-time and temporary staff. It is partly because of this scale and solid financial standing that the company is able to provide various benefits.

Such measures may not work for smaller businesses, however.

Takanobu Miura, president of manufacturer Miura, hopes there will be more opportunities for his employees to meet people outside the workplace. | Fukushima Minpo

Miura, a manufacturer based in Sukagawa, Fukushima Prefecture, has about 70 employees, most of whom are men. President Takanobu Miura, 49, has long wondered how he could help his unmarried employees meet potential partners.

The company gives employees Saturdays and Sundays off and encourages them to use their paid leave, aiming to create an environment in which they can enjoy their private lives. However, Miura admits that it is difficult for the company to bring up topics like dating or marriage.

“These days, personal choices are respected,” he said.

Miura took over the business from his father in January 2011, just before the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear disaster. The company moved its factory to its current location and expanded operations with high technical capabilities in sand casting and plastic molding. It also focused on hiring local high school graduates.

In 2017, the company became the first business in Sukagawa to receive a national certificate for small and medium-size enterprises that were actively hiring and training young people, with solid management.

In recent years, Miura has been creating a more family-friendly workplace. The company has actively hired the wives of employees and introduced a system by which some staff can work from home using company-provided laptops. It also began a system to allow employees to apply for up to five consecutive days off to coincide with school holidays to make it easier to take family trips.

Still, Miura has not found a clear strategy for how best to support single employees. He wants them to build families and lead stable lives so they can continue contributing to the company. But he feels hesitant about taking action, considering a growing emphasis on privacy.

“Even well-intended actions or words could be misunderstood, so it’s hard to say anything.”

One day, Miura heard from a fellow business owner about a new matchmaking initiative the prefecture launched last year. Under the initiative, companies and organizations are invited to hold exchange events for employees seeking partners.

With a sense of security that it was backed by the local government, Miura reached out to unmarried employees to introduce an event held in the city last December. Three of those he talked to attended the event, giving him positive feedback that “it was fun to interact” with people from various professions.

“Probably, I’m not the only employer feeling this way,” Miura said, adding that he hopes such matchmaking events with government involvement will expand. “I hope there will be more opportunities in society for men and women who want to meet their potential partners to connect with others outside of their usual circles.”