Guru

Miki Hiradate, chief executive at Tokyo-based Hime & Company, did womanhood everywhere a favour by suggesting that being dumped was harder to deal with than giving birth.

"Not everyone needs to take maternity leave but with heartbreak, everyone needs time off," she gushed, presumably stabbing photos of her ex-boyfriend with a compass.

In a move that would fall foul of almost every piece of UK discrimination legislation, women at the firm aged 24 years or younger can take one day off per year, while those between 25 and 29 can take two days off and those 30 or older can take three days off.

"Women in their 20s can find their next love quickly, but it's tougher for women in their 30s, and their break-ups tend to be more serious," Hiradate said, calmly scratching a single line through each of a huge pile of CDs.

Surely this would give young staff a difficult judgement to make when dumped early in the year - should they cash in on their crying-and-chocolate day there and then, or struggle through the day in case a more serious relationship flourishes and ends before Christmas?

In the interests of equality, Guru is going to start the campaign for blokes to have paid time off when their football team loses, their dinner wasn't cooked right or they have had to listen to women whingeing.