PETTY SELF-SUPPORTING MAKERS IN THE DOWNTOWN OF TOKYO

Abstract

This paper mainly aims to clarify the present status of many craftsman engaged in leather and furniture industries, living in the downtown of Tokyo. Both leather and furniture industries in Japan generally have following character-istics: 1) These industries are mostly occupied by petty selfsupporting makers. 2) These industries are both located in the downtown of large cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, etc. 3) Reproduction of labor force has been made on a small scale under the ap-prenticeship and putting-out system. 4) Large corporations do not directly participate in the process of production. Especially leather industry is peculiar to have originated from traditional “Buraku” manufacture which sprung up in segregated districts at the feudal age. After the Kanto Earthquake of 1923, ragpickers were forced to live in the dis-trict of Motogi; a lowland along the Arakawa river, by the government authorities.During World War II, the compulsorily migrated Korean and low income group had centered into the slums. Rag-pickers and leather manufacturers began to increase in number. In addition, many furniture makers, who had concentrated in the former Arakawa-ku removed to the outskirts of the slums of Motogi, Adachi-ku. As a result, small-scale factories are densely located in this area. The self-supporting makers, mainly made up of unpaid family workers, play an important role in the leather and the furniture industries of this area. The self-support-ing makers are neither capitalists nor wage laborers. For they are mainly supported by unpaid family workers despite of having means of production. The lower class of the self-supporting makers are defined as follows. 1) no wage laborer. 2) supply of raw materials from lager ones. 3) no subcontract. These self-supporting makers earn a processing wage from large ones which supply the materials. Therefore, these self-supporting makers are termed capitalistic domestic wage laborers. The apprenticeship system has a tendency of crush by the mechanization and the lack of young labor forces. The social division of labor has developed and brought a “deformed craftsman”, who only takes charge of partial process. Many auxiliary workmen, who are mostly housewives of low income group and surplus labor force in the slums, have participated in the process of production. As to production control, wholesale capitals have become weaker, though they still control the completed-products in the market. On the other hand, large makers are taking the place of the wholesale capitals. Facing the economic depression, many of the self-supporting makers are forced to close their businesses for the decline in demand. As a result, they are obliged to become an unstable wage laborers in the downtown of Tokyo.