The Transformation of Young Rural Women into Disciplined Labor under Competition-oriented Management: The Experience of the Silk-reeling Industry in Japan

Abstract

Most of the textile workers in Japan were composed of young unmarried women with rural origins, who were inexperienced workers with high job turn-over rates. Nevertheless, they could be considered to be transformed into efficient semi-skilled labor after their entry to the industry. This was mainly realized by the following labor management policies : (1) the qualityconverted piece-rate wage system ; (2) the new-recruit training system under firm-specific motion studies ; and (3) the dormitory system with a strong control over privacy. It was technically educated managerial staff that promoted scientific quality and process controls as well as such labor management policies. In this sense, hence, it was technical education that encouraged a competitive edge of the Japanese textile industry in the inter-