Loss of Toyota’s first female executive is blow to Japan’s diversity drive

The resignation of Toyota Motor Corp.’s first female executive, who lasted just 90 days in the job, is a blow to Toyota’s drive to make management ranks more international and accepting of female executives.

It also deals a high-profile setback to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has made empowering women a priority to help modernize and jump-start the nation’s economy, including calling on Japan Inc. to have women in 30 percent of leadership roles by the end of the decade.

Julie Hamp, a 55-year-old American who was Toyota’s chief communications officer and one of the company’s highest-ranking non-Japanese executives, gave notice of her resignation Tuesday over her drug-related arrest last month.

Toyota announced Wednesday that it accepted the resignation, citing the concerns and inconvenience raised by her June 18 arrest for allegedly importing prescription painkillers that require prior permission before they can be brought into Japan.

“Japan Inc. will suffer...

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