Corporatism as a Crisis Response to Democratisation? Comparing the Rise and Fall of Corporatism in South Korea and South Africa

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn South Africa and South Korea, the state adopted corporatism as a crisis response to the demands of democratisation. As a result, as social dialogue mechanisms, the corporatist institutions in South Africa and South Korea have failed to bring the actors together and to resolve the various issues as these institutions were expected to do. Labour in particular has been placed at a disadvantage in the overall policy-making process. Consequently, labour has become discontented, forcing it to withdraw from these processes. This article compares the rise and fall of corporatism in two seemingly very different cases, namely South Africa and South Korea by examining four similar reasons that prompted the adoption of corporatism and four similar conditions that also led to its collapse.