A tourist visiting Japan may at first experience a bit of a culture shock after noticing the degree to which everything in Japanese life is ranked: corporations, universities, even educational programs. These rankings are widely reported and accepted. Moreover, the ratings shape day to day social interaction: Japanese find is difficult to sit, talk or eat together unless the relative rankings of those present have been established, often through the practice of meishi (the exchange of business cards).

The apparent pre-occupation with ranking and formality suggests an exceptional degree of stratification. Yet researchers have determined that Japan’s level if income inequality is among the lowest of major industrial societies. The pay gap between Japan’s top corporate executives and the nation’s lowest-paid workers is about 8 to 1; the comparable figure for the United States would be 37 to 1.

One factor that works against inequality is that Japan is rather homogenous – certainly when compared with the United States – in terms of race, ethnicity, nationality, and language. Japan’s population is 98% percent Japanese. Still, there is discrimination against the nation’s Chinese and Korean minorities, and the Burkaumin, a low-status subculture, encounter extensive prejudice.

Perhaps, the most pervasive form of inequality in Japan today is gender discrimination. Overall, women earn only about 64 percent of men’s wages. Fewer than 10 percent of Japanese managers are female – a ratio that is one of the lowest in the world. Even in developing countries, women are twice as likely to be managers as women in Japan.

In 1985, Japan’s parliament – at the time, 97 percent male – passed an Equal Employment bill that encourages employers to end sex determination in hiring, assignment and promotion policies. However, feminist organizations were dissatisfied because the law lacked strong sanctions. In a landmark ruling issued in 1996, a Japanese court for the first time held an employer liable for denying promotions due to sex discrimination.

Progress has also been made in terms of public opinion. In 1987, 43 percent of Japanese agreed that married women should stay home, but by 2000, the proportion had dropped to 25 percent. On the political front, Japanese women have made progress but remain underrepresented. In a study of women in government around the world, Japan ranked near the bottom of the countries studied, with only 7 percent of its national legislators being female.

Answer the following questions:

1. What do you understand by the term social stratification? How would you describe the system of social stratification in Japan?
2. Why did the author describe Japan as ‘rather homogenous’?
3. In your opinion, why do women occupy such subordinate positions in the Japanese society?
4. Have you observed stratification in the society around you? What are some commonly observed forms of social stratification that you have noticed?