Transformation of Japanese Employment Relations

JUN IMAI (Ph.D. Sociology, SUNY Stony Brook, 2006) Assistant Professor in the Center for the Study of Social Stratification and Inequality (CSSI) at Tohoku University in Japan. Before joining Tohoku, he was a post-doctoral research associate in the Institute of East Asian Studies and Sociology at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany.

• Introduction 1. Sociological Theory of Employment Relations 2. Employment Relations in Post-War Japan 3. Political Segmentation of the Labor Market: the Establishment and Expansion of New Employment Forms 4. The DWS: Deregulation of Working Time and Its Impact on the Effort Bargain 5. Re-bargaining Effort: the Introduction of Results-Orientation at COMPUJ 6. Conclusion: Changes and Future Directions of Japanese Employment Relations

'This book will be of great interest to academics working in the field of Japanese labour and employment, to those interested in comparative employment relations more broadly and to Japanese policymakers...the book does a very valuable job of pulling together a lot of Japanese source material for the English language reader...a valuable contribution to the academic literature on Japanese employment.' - Helen Macnaughtan, School of Oriental and African Studies, Japan Forum'...a highly useful resource...' - Social Science Japan'In his overall analysis the relationship between structure and agency sometimes remains ambiguous, as an emphasis on the imperatives of growing white-collar employment and international competition coexists with highlighting the role of radical deregulationists in driving change. Nevertheless, Imai's final argument concerns the importance of developing a more effective strategy and voice for employees if the costs of restructuring for labour are to be addressed.' - Work, Employment, & Society