Examines the role that education and training have played in Japan1s transformation from a preindustrial agrarian society in the late 19th century to one of the leading industrial nations some 100 years later. It provides as well some lessons for developing countries. Contents: the role of schools and training institutes in the formation of manpower, the role of companies in the upgrading and utilization of manpower, and conclusion. Extensive charts and tables.

First published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The recognised success of the post-war Japanese economy has rested on the qualities of its manufacturing industries. This book explores the origins, rationale, and consequences of this transformation. Using theoretical insights and detailed evidence, it reviews the rise of the Japanese economy and the nature, causes, and changing objectives of vertical and horizontal integration; ownership, control, financing and bank-industry relations; and the major operational functions of production, human resources, distribution and marketing.

During the period of industrialisation in Japan from the 1870s to the 1930s, the textile industry was Japan's largest manufacturing industry, and the country's major source of export earnings. It had a predominantly female labour force, drawn mainly from the agricultural population. This book examines the institutions of the labour market of this critical industry during this important period for Japanese economic development. Based on extensive original research, the book provides a wealth of detail, showing amongst other things the complexity of the labour market, the interdependence of the agricultural and manufacturing sectors, and the importance of gender. It argues that the labour market institutions which developed in this period had a profound effect on the labour market and labour relations in the postwar years.

Engineers are a key occupational group in the transformation of the modern world. Contrasts between Japans economic miracle and Britains relative economic decline have often been linked to differences in education, training and employment of engineers. Yet, such views have often rested on little more than colourful anecdotes and selective statistics. Using careful and systematic comparisons, Kevin McCormick locates the differences between rhetoric and reality to dismiss both the inflated claims of the 1980s and the excessive detraction of the 1990s with Japans prolonged recession.

This volume explains the salient features of the Japanese labour market. The key idea in this book is integrated segmentation. Emphasis is upon segmentation: on the demand side, within the educational system and, on supply side, monitoring costs which underlie labour contracts. Using long run official government statistical evidence, it is argued that what is peculiar to Japan is the integration of segmented labour markets. By virtue of segmentation the Japanese labour market is deeply competitive. By virtue of integration it is highly cooperative.

It might be thought that these new management techniques require the high levels of education and training found in the Japanese labour force. But this book - based upon studies of firms implementing these new management techniques in a range of developing countries in Asia, Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa (as well as the UK and the USA) - shows that considerable gains can be achieved even in low-income countries with poor levels of human resource development. These management techniques improve the performance both of the implementing firms and the overall economy.

How has South Korea's development influenced and been influenced by world events? What light can it shed on the way that international struggles for hegemony affect local environments? Phoebe Moore seeks to address these questions critically, from the perspective of International Political Economics, and so provides important insight into one of the fastest growing Asian economies. She examines the neo-Gramscian school theories – that world history reveals specific periods of hegemonic stability, such as during the post World War II period of 'Pax Americana' – and refutes this position through an original account of Korean development. Instead, she observes that all economic development in this country has been carried out through 'passive revolution' driven by an elite, frequently supported by external forces, against the will of a large part of the population, namely the working classes. Moore draws out the relationships between socio-economic change, passive revolution, hegemony struggles and global politics, making this a key resource for Asian political economics, labour relations and international politics.