Tokyo , Japan ( CNN ) -- If more women worked , Japan could add millions of employees to its rapidly shrinking workforce , a government study released Tuesday said . The key is better pay and a more flexible work culture . If women did not quit their jobs due to marriage or childbirth , the report says , Japan 's workforce would increase by up to 4.5 million people . Female workers numbered 27.7 million in the Japanese workforce in 2009 , compared to 38.4 million men . The annual document analyzes the role of women in the Japanese economy and , this year , urges more flexibility so women can maintain careers and raise children . There is a significant drop in the number of women working in their 30s , according to the report . Pay may be one of the reasons . Total compensation for women equals about 40 percent of what men make in Japan , the government said . Hourly wages for women are about 70 percent of that for their male counterparts . Although Japan has world 's second largest economy , it also has the world 's fastest aging population and one of the lowest birthrates on the planet . By 2050 , the government estimates 40 percent of Japan 's population will be over the age of 65 . The numbers represent a shrinking tax base for the Japanese economy -- one that has the world 's largest debt to gross-domestic-product ratio , at nearly 200 percent . Paying that debt off will be an increasing challenge for Tokyo , if the number of taxpayers dwindles every year .
Government report says women could boost Japanese workforce . Report : flexibility would help women work and raise families . Japan has world 's fastest-aging population and a low birthrate .