And men will no longer be able to ask questions about sexual experience, or show off obscene posters or magazine photos. Still, attitudes will be hard to change. It used to be that many women were under pressure to quit work when they got married. These days they can work, but pressure to resign comes when they have children. A 25 year-old college graduate who worked as a clerk at a small distribution company for nearly four years recalled similar intrusions into her private life.
Many women also complain that they are always the ones asked to serve food or drink.
The 25 year-old employee, who spoke on the condition she not be identified, said that at company dinners she was asked to fill wine cups or soy sauce dishes, or to sing with executives if they were at karaoke clubs. The guidelines, being directed only at Government offices, will not free employees like her from such tasks. One of the symbols of tradition in corporations, in fact. is the tea service. At many companies, tea or coffee is served twice a day, often to the desks of all the employees, with the women having to remember who takes sugar or milk. There is also extra tea service if there are guests or conferences.