This book analyses reforms to retirement policies in Japan and South Korea, especially in the context of rapid population ageing. A defining feature of the labour markets and workplaces in these two nations, and the lives of workers and families, is involuntary retirement at relatively young ages. The book explains past developments and recent reforms of retirement policies both in the two countries, as well as in a cross-national comparative manner. At the core of the book is an examination of the social, economic and political conflicts around retirement, such as between younger and older workers, between employers and governments, and between employers and workers. The policy recommendations offered apply not only to Japan and South Korea, but also to other nations such as China. The volume is of value particularly for those interested in labour markets and workplaces, population ageing and contemporary East Asia, in addition to those studying retirement and pensions. Policymakers, business leaders, worker organizations, researchers and students will benefit from the insights about the past, present and future of retirement.

The distinguishing feature for many workers in South Korea is contractual – and often involuntary – retirement at a young age (mid-50s for most workers) followed by precarious and low-paying self-employment or contract work. In the past this practice, which is also found in other East Asian nations, provided firms with a youthful and highly productive workforce. However, with a rapidly aging population and shifts in the labour market, the existing arrangement is becoming less and less functional. This book examines how this retirement arrangement arose, and the policy reforms that have been both undertaken and proposed to allow workers to remain employed longer. The analysis focuses on the institutional constraints to reforms, as well as the impact forced retirement has on individuals. Using a multi-disciplinary and comparative approach, the authors study contractual mandatory retirement trends and policies in South Korea, and in doing so illuminate the political, social, legal, economic and labour market implications of this widespread practice. As nations across Asia face aging populations, this book will be welcomed by students and scholars interested in Korean studies, social policy, social welfare and gerontology. It will also be of great value to policy makers.

To a backdrop of ageing societies, pension crises and labour market reforms, this book investigates how the policy shift from early retirement to active ageing has affected individual retirement behaviour. Focusing on eleven European countries, the United States and Japan, it brings together leading international experts to analyze recent changes in pension systems. Their findings demonstrate that there has been a fundamental transition in pension policies and a steep increase in older workers’ retirement ages and employment rates. Yet changes in retirement behavior are not evenly distributed across all societal strata. This raises the serious concern that an overall rise in the retirement age will be accompanied by the re-emergence of social inequality in the transition from work to retirement. This innovative edited collection will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, economics, political science, human resources management, gerontology and social policy, and also to policy-makers and professionals dealing with older workers.

Introduces readers to the impact of demographic changes in Korea, particularly the impact of these on work, retirement and pensions; and as importantly, provides an explanation for the reforms of public policy in these domains.

SCOTT (copy 1): From the John Holmes collection.

East Asia is at the heart of the global economic transformation, and the countries of the region are witnessing rapidly changing labour markets, alongside the pressure to cut production costs and lower taxes in order to become successful ‘competition states’. These changes have resulted in increased welfare demands which governments, organizations and agencies across the region have had to address. This book examines welfare regimes in the Greater China region, encompassing mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. In so doing, it explores the ways in which the rapid growth and internationalisation of the economy across Greater China is presenting new social policy challenges that governments, social welfare organizations and agencies in the region are having to respond to. Rather than simply describing and categorising welfare systems, the contributors to this volume add to our understanding of how one of the major economic transformations of the contemporary era in East Asia is shaping welfare provision in the region. In turn, in this context of economic change, they examine the new strategies and measures that have been adopted in order to reduce the heavy burden on the state in terms of welfare provision, whilst also attempting to diversify funding and provision sources to meet the pressing welfare needs. Based upon extensive fieldwork by leading scholars of social policy, this book will appeal to students and scholars of Asian social policy, comparative development and social policy, social welfare and Chinese studies.

Ian Neary looks in detail at the history of the introduction of human rights ideas into Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and examines how, and to what effect, state and society have incorporated the specific international standards on childrens' and patients' rights into legal systems and social practice. This comprehensively researched, accessibly written book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Asian studies, human rights, sociology and politics.

This book brings together Eastern and Western perspectives to explore human resource interventions into extending working life, including phased retirement, healthy work environments and lifelong learning. It assesses issues of implementation in differing cultural, intergenerational, institutional and family contexts.

Written by leading experts, Public Administration in East Asia: Mainland China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan examines the inner workings of governments in East Asia, in particular its public administration and related public policy processes. It focuses on the apparatus of government — the agencies, their values, context, and policies within which they operate. Organized in parallel sections, the book covers the history, public policy processes, organization, HRM, ethics, corruption, intergovernmental relations, performance management, and e-government. It discusses each of these topics separately for Mainland China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, providing an unusual and important comparative perspective. The book includes essential knowledge and facts, discussions of emerging issues, and useful resources for further reading. It addresses questions such as: What is the history of public administration in East Asia? How are decisions made? What is the role of Confucianism in shaping public administration? How does the developmental path affect public administration? Why is performance management emphasized? What is the state of citizen participation? How are ethical underpinnings of the civil service different from the West? Why are intergovernmental relations an essential issue in East Asia? What are the politics behind world-class achievements in IT? What is the nature of civil service reform? What is the nature of efforts to combat government corruption? You can find many books on trade policy and politics that sometimes give good insight into the operation of government agencies. You can also find a few edited books that contain single chapters on countries in the Asia-Pacific region. What is missing, however, is a single resource that provides an overview with depth on matters solely about public administration. This state-of-the-art resource brings together the fragments of existing knowledge on East Asian economies, filling the need for a comprehensive compendium that showcases the public administration practices in the region and East Asia’s innovative approaches to governance and its many challenges.

Advancing the Regional Commons in the New East Asia highlights a number of interests which members of ASEAN and Plus Three countries collectively recognize. This set of common interests includes not only economic development but also social development. Written by nationals in their respective countries, the different chapters in this volume highlights the different foundations for such common interests and these reflect the different constructive ways in which ASEAN and Plus Three countries come to see a multi-strand cooperative partnership. The task of advancing the regional commons will involve efforts to recognise and nurture ASEAN’s and Plus Three’s common interests in terms of broad social development, managing regional security issues, the development of a regional infrastructure, and ensuring collective progress for all member countries. ASEAN becomes a community in 2015 and the idea of embracing, protecting, sustaining and advancing the regional commons become a vital process. Concurrently, APT has also realized that its contribution to the achieving goal of community and promoting regional commons is absolutely critical for both ASEAN and the Plus Three countries. Academics will find in this volume a clear analytical treatment of issues which regional groupings are currently facing and this can provide the basis for a comparative analysis. This volume will also be of interest to students and the general public looking for a systematic introduction to the successful implementation of cooperative ventures and also an assessment of the new collaborative energies which shape this dynamic region.