HRM responses to ageing societies in Germany and Japan: Contexts for comparison

Abstract

IntroductionThe broad context for the discussion presented in this introductory contribution and to those that follow is given by reference to an emerging demographic context for human resource management (HRM) research and practice that is unprecedented. However, before exploring the outlines of this broader context we propose as an initial point of reference the following definition of HRM:A strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organization's most valued assets - the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of objectives (Armstrong, 2006, p. 3)The strategic (in practice) and conceptual (research) context within which 'assets' categorised as 'human resources' might be identified and 'valued' in relation to an organisation's pursuit of business objectives is a question of deep human interest: many of us want to work; most people need to; very few have much control over how their status as 'assets' to specific organisations and to society generally is assessed other than in response to how they as workers are deemed - individually and collectively - to perform (cf. Fay, 2011a). Essentially, HRM is a people-focussed activity manifested in a series of investments in human abilities and potential to add value to organisations pursuing strategic business objectives (cf. Rowley & Jackson, 2011a). Each HRM investment implies a range of associated physical, physiological, psychological, social and ethical complexities. HRM researchers and practitioners are tasked to explain critically and communicate effectively how these complexities both inform and give context to how HRM might be perceived as a 'coherent' and 'strategic' activity by members of the various stakeholder groups who directly or indirectly are affected by the HRM endeavour.In other words, HRM research and practice as activities designed ostensibly to benefit our common understanding of people in and at work need to be justified clearly and consistently in respect of the impact these activities have on shaping people's lives at various stages in their experiences and / or expectations of employment. In this and the discussions to follow we focus our attention on workers in Germany and Japan who are aged fifty or more, are commonly assumed to be nearing the later stages of their employment experience when compared directly with 'younger' employees and thus, by our terms, members of their respective 'ageing societies'.Demographic shiftIn this Special Issue we develop our focus on older workers with reference to demographic trends across national and international markets for employment - trends that in global terms can be described as 'demographic shift'. In general terms, 'demographics' represents a systematic and scientific approach towards generating (usually) quantitative data in order to characterise and compare populations across national, regional and other socially-defined contexts in relation to variable measures of age, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status, educational background, employment experiences, and so on. Correspondingly, by focussing our attention on the HRM activities ('responses') that impact on the lives of 'older' workers in Germany and Japan, we recognise that the employment experiences and expectations of workers aged fifty and over impacts on the experiences and expectations of workers below this age; not least, those employees who perceive themselves at the early stages of developing a career and / or working towards some sense of secure employment.There are various approaches towards identifying trends that, in sum, might suggest processes of 'demographic shift'. To illustrate, a study of this process relevant to China (Hayutin, 2008) identified patterns using measures that included: fertility and birth rates, life expectancy, proportion of population aged 65 and over, median age in society, median age in employment, worker-to-retiree proportions. …