The Wages of Affluence: Labor and Management in Postwar Japan (Labour and Management in Postwar Japan)

Andrew Gordon goes to the core of the Japanese enterprise system, the workplace, and reveals a complex history of contest and confrontation. The Japanese model produced a dynamic economy which owed as much to coercion as to happy consensus. Managerial hegemony was achieved only after a bitter struggle that undermined the democratic potential of postwar society. The book draws on examples across Japanese industry, but focuses in depth on iron and steel. This industry was at the center of the country's economic recovery and high-speed growth, a primary site of corporate managerial strategy and important labor union initiatives. Beginning with the Occupation reforms and their influence on the workplace, Gordon traces worker activism and protest in the 1950s and '60s, and how they gave way to management victory in the 1960s and '70s. He shows how working people had to compromise institutions of self-determination in pursuit of economic affluence. He illuminates the Japanese system with frequent references to other capitalist nations whose workplaces assumed very different shape, and looks to Japan's future, rebutting hasty predictions that Japanese industrial relations are about to be dramatically transformed in the American free-market image. Gordon argues that it is more likely that Japan will only modestly adjust the status quo that emerged through the turbulent postwar decades he chronicles here. Andrew Gordon Goes To The Core Of The Japanese Enterprise System, The Workplace, And Reveals A Complex History Of Contest And Confrontation. The Japanese Model Produced A Dynamic Economy That Owed As Much To Coercion As To Happy Consensus. Managerial Hegemony Was Achieved Only After A Bitter Struggle That Undermined The Democratic Potential Of Postwar Society. The Book Draws On Examples Across Japanese Industry, But Focuses In Depth On Iron And Steel. This Industry Was At The Center Of The Country's Economic Recovery And High-speed Growth, And Was A Primary Site Of Corporate Managerial Strategy And Important Labor Union Initiatives. 1. Japan Reborn 2. Organizing The Steelworkers 3. Restoring Managerial And State Authority 4. Reinventing The Steel Mill 5. Forging An Activist Union 6. Breaking The Impasse 7. Fabricating The Politics Of Cooperation 8. Mobilizing Total Commitment 9. Managing Society For Business 10. Japan's Third Way. Andrew Gordon. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 249-260) And Index. This text explores the Japanese enterprise system, the workplace and reveals a complex history of contest and confrontation. The Japanese model produced a dynamic economy which owed as much to coersion as to happy consensus. Managerial hegemony was achieved only after a bitter struggle that undermined the democratic potential of postwar society. It draws on examples across Japanese industry, focusing mainly on steel and iron. This industry was the centre of the country's economic recovery and high-speed growth, a site of corporate managerial strategy and important labour union initiatives Beginning with Occupation reforms and their influence on the workplace, Andrew Gordon traces worker activism and protest in the 1950s and 1960s, and how they gave way to management victory in the 1960s and 1970s. He shows how working people had to compromise institutions of self-determination in pursuit of economic affluence. The text refers to other capitalist workplaces which assumed very different practices and looks to Japan's future This text explores the Japanese enterprise system, the workplace and reveals a complex history of contest and confrontation. It draws on examples across Japanese industry, focusing mainly on steel and iron. Beginning with Occupation reforms, worker activism and protest is examined Gordon reveals a complex history of contest and confrontation in the Japanese workplace. Beginning with Occupation reforms and their influence, Gordon traces worker activism and protest in the 1950s and ’60s, and how they gave way to management victory in the 1960s and ’70s.