Factors associated with occupation changes after pregnancy/delivery: result from Japan Environment & Children's pilot study.

Analysis revealed that the type of employment, rather than the category of occupation, was associated with the continuation of work after pregnancy or delivery more closely, as <non-regular employees> compared with <regular employees> continued to work less frequently. Furthermore, on comparison of the category of occupation among <regular employees>, <<those engaged in specialized or technical work> > and < <those engaged in clerical work or management> > were shown to be more likely to continue to be engaged in the same occupation after pregnancy or delivery. These differences may be related to availability of the child-care leave program and other support resources, therefore, it may be important to establish social systems that enable all females, to use these support resources if they wish, and actively work, while delivering and parenting their children.