マミートラック

• Reading: マミートラック
• Romaji: mamī torakku
• Kanji breakdown: From English 'mommy track' → マミー (mommy) + トラック (track/path)
• Pronunciation: /ma.mi.i to.ɾak.ku/

Meaning

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.

Examples

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。 After I came back from maternity leave, I got put on the mommy track — nothing but dead-end assignments.
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。 I talked to my manager about my career plan after returning so I wouldn't end up on the mommy track.
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。 The problem with the mommy track is that it's decided for you, even when you never asked for it.

Usage Guide

Context: workplace, news, social issues

Tone: critical, feminist

Do Say

• 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.)

Don't Say

• 「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)

Common Mistakes

• 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

Origin & History

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.

Cultural Context

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

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

Social background: Corporate workers, particularly women

Regional notes: Used across all of Japan. Central to discussions about gender equality in the Japanese workplace.