This is a critical labor and childcare policy survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, providing detailed analysis of young people's intentions for future childcare participation and expectations for workplace environments. The survey was conducted from March to May 2025, targeting 2,000 men and women aged 20-34, serving as fundamental data for formulating policies on declining birthrate countermeasures and work style reforms.
Regarding attitudes toward co-parenting (couples cooperating in childcare), 82.4% of survey respondents answered "support co-parenting," with particularly high support of 88.1% among those in their 20s. However, 64.8% responded "want to co-parent but need social and workplace support for realization," clearly revealing the gap between ideals and reality. By gender, 69.2% of women and 60.4% of men expressed the need for social/workplace support, with women showing stronger support needs.
Workplace environment expectations include "understanding for childcare leave take-up" (78.9%), "flexible working hour systems" (72.3%), "utilization of work-from-home/telework" (68.7%), and "enhanced short-time work systems" (64.2%) ranking highest. Particularly regarding men's childcare leave take-up, 73.8% of men answered "want to take leave," while "anxiety about workplace understanding" (67.4%), "anxiety about income reduction" (58.9%), and "anxiety about career impact" (52.1%) were cited as barriers to take-up.
Regarding ideal childcare leave duration, men most commonly preferred "1-3 months" at 38.2%, followed by "3-6 months" at 29.7%, showing tendency toward relatively short-term take-up. Women most commonly preferred "6 months-1 year" at 45.8%, with "1 year or more" also at 32.4%, showing many voices hoping for long-term take-up.