JST4120

Work and economic organisation in Japan

Ross Mouer and Wendy Smith

6 or 12 points
* 2 hours per week
* First semester
* Clayton

Objectives Students successfully completing this subject will be familiar with some of the major textbooks and paradigms which are relevant to understanding how work is organised in contemporary Japan. They will have been exposed to ideas about the structure of labor markets, the model of Japanese-style management, the Japanese system of industrial relations, and the track record of Japanese firms attempting to transfer their management practices abroad.

Synopsis This subject revolves around the critical examination of the `Japanese model' as it relates to the organisation of work in Japan and the debates on postmodernism, post-Fordist production and postindustrialism. Particular attention will be paid to the labor process at the micro- and macro-levels: market segmentation, skill formation, welfare corporatism, industrial relations, and the relationship between rationalisation and the capacity of the system to meet the social needs of the working population.

Assessment (6 points) Written (3500 words): 75%
* Seminar presentation (1000 words): 25%
Assessment (12 points) Written (8000 words): 85%
* Seminar presentation (1000 words): 15%