| "Office
Lady" or "OL" and "salaryman" aren't really English names
of jobs, but they are used very much in Japan. The
typical OL is single, in her twenties and sees her OL years as a time of freedom
and independence to enjoy life, to travel to foreign countries and to spend as
much as she wants in the shops. Many OLs live with
their parents or in cheap company dormitories, giving them the luxury of spending
their paychecks on themselves. The typical OL is not
on a career track, and will probably leave the company when she gets married. Even
if she does a wonderful job she probably won't be promoted and therefore, unlike
her male colleagues, she can leave her office when the workday officially ends. In
addition to their secretarial duties, OLs have to make tea, serve snacks, clean
the telephones and shop for office supplies and food. Basically,
highly-educated young women have to put up with the boredom of mindless work and
problems ranging from self-centered male bosses to sexual harassment. | 
