[Editorial] 460,000 Mothers of Infants and Toddlers Leave the Workforce, Childcare Environment Needs Further Improvement

Among married women who have left the workforce, the highest proportion are those with infants and toddlers under the age of six. According to the 'Employment Status of Married Women' released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics on the 20th, as of April this year, out of 885,000 Career-Interrupted Women living with children under 18, 461,000 have infants and toddlers, accounting for more than half. This indicates that young mothers are leaving their jobs due to the burden of childcare.
Career-Interrupted Women are defined as unemployed women who left their jobs due to marriage, childbirth, childcare, children's education, or family care. With increased female participation in economic activities, the employment rate for all married women reached 67.3% as of April, the highest since related statistics began in 2016. This reflects a strong willingness among women to work. Nevertheless, the high rate of career interruption and low employment among women with infants and toddlers is likely due to the practical difficulty of entrusting young children to others.
If the unavoidable career interruptions faced by women with infants and toddlers are left unaddressed, it will be difficult to prevent a vicious cycle of young people avoiding marriage and declining birth rates. It is especially important to acknowledge the reality that balancing work and childcare remains a significant challenge. This is not merely a personal issue, but one that leads to a decrease in the productive population and undermines the nation’s growth potential.
The government has introduced various policies, such as expanding daycare centers, increasing care services, and improving the Parental Leave system. However, there remains a significant gap between policy and reality. While the proportion of national and public daycare centers has increased, regional disparities are severe, with significant gaps between urban and rural areas. The shortage of Childcare Teachers and their poor working conditions make it difficult to expect high-quality care services. In many cases, companies only implement Parental Leave in formality. If policies do not function effectively on the ground, the problem of career interruption will inevitably persist.
Now, policy improvements must focus not only on expanding childcare infrastructure quantitatively but also on enhancing its quality. Flexible childcare systems tailored to parents' working hours and lifestyles should be introduced, and practical measures to support the establishment of workplace daycare centers are needed. In addition, programs to facilitate smooth return to work after Parental Leave and enhanced reemployment training for Career-Interrupted Women should be strengthened.
This year, from January to August, the number of newborns saw the largest increase in 18 years, signaling a possible shift in the chronic low birthrate trend. Without substantial measures to sustain this rebound, hopes for a recovery in the birth rate could quickly fade. Expanding childcare infrastructure is not merely a welfare policy but a core task that determines the nation’s sustainability. Only when a social foundation is established that allows women to balance work and family without fear of career interruption will they be able to return to the workforce. Comprehensive childcare infrastructure policies that reflect reality are urgently needed.