マミートラック

• 読み: マミートラック
• ローマ字: mamī torakku
• 漢字の分解: From English 'mommy track' → マミー (mommy) + トラック (track/path)
• 発音: /ma.mi.i to.ɾak.ku/

意味

Mommy track — the career stagnation that women experience after having children, being sidelined from promotions and challenging assignments.

マミートラック refers to the separate, slower career path that working mothers are often placed on — whether explicitly or implicitly. After returning from maternity leave, women may be assigned to less demanding (but also less career-advancing) roles, excluded from after-hours networking that drives promotions, or assumed to no longer be ambitious. It's a significant contributor to Japan's persistent gender inequality in the workplace and low rates of women in management.

例文

1. 育休から戻ったらマミートラックに乗せられて、やりがいのない仕事ばかり。
2. マミートラックにならないように、復帰後のキャリアプランを上司と話し合った。
3. マミートラックって本人が望んでないのに、勝手に決められるのが問題だよね。

使い方ガイド

場面: workplace, news, social issues

トーン: critical, feminist

正しい言い方

• マミートラックを防ぐには、制度だけじゃなく意識改革が必要。 (Preventing the mommy track requires not just policy changes but a shift in mindset.)
• マミートラックに乗りたくないって言ったら、わがままだって思われた。 (When I said I didn't want to be put on the mommy track, they thought I was being selfish.)

避ける言い方

• 「子どもいるんだから仕方ないよね」はマミートラックを正当化する言葉 ('It can't be helped since you have kids' is language that justifies the mommy track)

よくある間違い

• Assuming women choose the mommy track — most are placed on it against their wishes
• Not understanding that マミートラック affects long-term earnings and retirement savings, not just short-term career pace

起源と歴史

From English 'mommy track,' a term coined by American journalist in the 1980s. Adopted into Japanese discourse as women's workplace participation (女性活躍) became a national policy focus in the 2010s under Abenomics.

文化的背景

時代: 2010s heightened awareness with women's advancement policies

世代: Working women in their 20s-40s, discussed broadly

社会的背景: Corporate workers, particularly women

地域メモ: Used across all of Japan. Central to discussions about gender equality in the Japanese workplace.