INFLUENCE OF CHARACTERISTICS OF MANUFACTURING ON RECENT CHANGE OF POPULATION IN YONEZAWA, YAMAGATA PREFECTURE

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Yonezawa, the largest local center in the southern part of Yamagata Prefecture, has a population of 92, 764 in 1970 and is noted for the textile industry originated from feudal ages. The population of the city has begun to decrease since 1960 when the Japanese econo-my entered a rapidly expanding stage. This change in population was mainly brought about, first by the relative shortage of employment for the growing number of labor forces and second by the specific characteristics involved in the city. The people who could not find suitable jobs were compelled to emigrate to the other areas, for instance, the Kei-Hin industrial belt where more employment opportunities are available. Many of these came from small farms which were relatively overpopulated. The manufacturing industry accounts for about 30% of the workers and is the most important industry group providing the employment in the city. Though the textile indus-try is stagnant in . its development, it employs the greatest number of workers in the man-ufacturing (41.7% in 1971). The growing electrical machinery industry follows to the textile industry by number of workers but its proportion of workers is only 16.4%. The contrast of the sex ratio and age structure of workers between these two industries are re-markable. Workers of the textile industry are getting older and 70.8% of them are women. The electrical machinery industry absorbs younger people and 56.7% are women. Because of the poor conditions of labor such as low wages, deficiency of welfare facilities and so on, it has become difficult for the textile industry to acquire younger people. The characteristics of the workers in manufacturing lie in the facts that it has older workers and more women than national averages. These characteristics are influenced by these two industries, particularly due to the nature of the textile industry. In addition to the 'shortage of employment, the manufacturing industry has such characteristics that the average age of workers are becoming older and existing jobs suitable for men are relatively limited in number. These factors caused the increasing emigration of laborers, especially that of younger men, and the decline of population in the city.