Page 246 - 2018 Defense White Paper

by supporting the work–life balance of servicemembers for both genders.

A pregnant female servicemember is exempted from night duties for up to a year after
childbirth. Servicemembers raising children under the age of six years are given a two-hour
leave for up to 24 months. Up to two days of childcare leave is allowed for servicemembers

participating in the off icial school events of their children attending schools, which increases to
three days for members with three or more children. In addition, the MND increased the length
of spouse childbirth leave from 5 to 9 days to 10 days. Furthermore, when calculating a service

period for promotion, servicemembers who took a childcare leave can have up to three years
of leave included in their service period starting with their second children. Previously, only
servicemembers with three or more children could have up to three years of their childcare leave

included in their service period.
In addition, to attenuate the burden of childcare caused by frequent transfer and allocation
to remote areas, the MND has set up and is operating military day care centers and cooperative
childcare spaces. The MND plans to expand the number of military day care centers from 125

in 2017 to 164 in 2022 and that of cooperative childcare spaces, which replace day-care centers
in areas where the latter are not available, from 22 in 2017 to 35 in 2022.

Starting in 2018, the MND will adopt the Family-Friendliness Certif ication Program, which
is currently required for government and public institutions, 11) to foster a family-friendly
organizational culture based on an objective assessment of the current level of work– life balance
in military units.

| Measures for Eliminating Sexual Violence | To foster safe working conditions free
from sexual violence, the MND implements various measures including tailored sexual violence

prevention education, site-oriented prevention systems, victim protection and support, and
reinforced punishment for sexual offenders.
In September 2017, to eliminate sexual violence in the military, the MND announced the Plan

for Reinforcing Measures for Elimination of Sexual Violence aimed at raising the awareness of

11) The program assesses institutions and issues a certification to those that offer high-quality childbirth, childcare,
and education support programs (spouse childbirth leave, childcare leave, workplace childcare support,
education support programs, and others); support programs for dependent family members; worker support
programs, and flexible working hour programs.

244 Chapter 6 Instilling a High-Morale Military Culture Trusted by the People