Japan's most powerful business lobby will actively urge companies to put women in more than 40% of management posts by 2030 as part of its growth strategy due out soon.

The decision by the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, marks a reversal for an organization that previously left member businesses to set their own targets for hiring female managers.

Women constitute less than 12% of managers in Japan, government statistics show -- far less than in Europe, the U.S. and even many emerging economies. By setting a benchmark, Keidanren will communicate a sense of urgency over diversity in staffing.

The lobby will strongly encourage companies to radically overhaul employment practices so that pregnancies and child care do not hurt women's career prospects.

Keidanren will also urge the government to push for women to fill more than 40% of management jobs. The government had set a 30% target for 2020 that has since been pushed back.

The lobby looks to apply pressure on the government by setting a higher bar.

Japan ranked a record-low 121st out of 153 countries in the World Economic Forum's gender gap report published in 2019.