No. 19

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Behaviour of the Labour Market in the Context of Flexible Forms of Employment: the Example of Japan

18 June 2009

Studies

RiTo No. 19, 2009

  • Janika Bachmann

    Ph.D. student, Tallinn University, Institute of Political Science and Governance

The deregulated labour market became a new solution in the 1990s for reducing unemployment and offering a more efficient way for employers to cope with economic cycles.

However, in recent years scientists have started discussing whether the results really support radical deregulation of labour market. Labour market analysis usually focuses on the relationship between unemployment and different employment formats. This kind of analysis does not offer an understanding of labour market behaviour among different age groups. Focusing on Japan, the author analyzes how growth in non-standard employment formats has influenced labour force participation among different age groups. Labour market participants can be seen as consumers who make their decisions based on different criteria and values. Those factors have a major influence on their labour market behaviour. As the result of the analysis, the author found that different age groups have accustomed differently to the flexible/non-standard employment formats, and their behaviour is influenced by factors outside the labour market, such as general values and attitudes, personal objectives and purposes, and social and tax policy.

Full article in Estonian

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