Abstract
Using the case of women coal miners from a remote Kyushu district, this paper attempts to highlight some of the difficulties associated with an occupying power introducing major labour reforms. In this case I look at women’s employment in the mines during the 1930s-40s, and examine how and why women resisted the proscription against women’s mining labour, introduced by the Occupation in 1947, through the years of US control. The resistance to the edict by both small-medium sized coal mining management and women coalminers demonstrates that even when an occupation power appears in total control of a nation, the culture of the occupied is a significant factor that must not be overlooked. It is clear that many companies continued to operate in defiance of Occupation edicts for many years after 1945; the culture of the coalfields – the total Panopticon-like control of small mining towns and villages by mining companies – plays an important part in understanding how this situation came about. The removal of women from the mines did take place, but for reasons that were not within the ambit of the Occupation’s motivations.
Highlights
During the period from 1943–1945 Japan’s big coalmines faced a severe labour shortage
Women were seen as a human resource, and with their tacit consent, resistance to the demands of the state was manufactured through the twin deceit of either falsifying employment records to record women as men on the roster, or by ensuring that the false records were transmitted to interested authorities who lacked the logistic capacity to investigate and audit the smaller mines
Assessing the influence of the Japanese surrender, and the subsequent US Occupation, on women miners, renders immediately apparent the difference between the rhetoric of the Occupation, which emphasised democracy, industrial advancement, and human rights, and what transpired on the ground in areas beyond the reach of the Occupation forces
Summary
During the period from 1943–1945 Japan’s big coalmines faced a severe labour shortage. Women were seen as a human resource, and with their tacit consent, resistance to the demands of the state was manufactured through the twin deceit of either falsifying employment records to record women as men on the roster, or by ensuring that the false records were transmitted to interested authorities who lacked the logistic capacity to investigate and audit the smaller mines Such practices had long historical precedents, and reflect the difficulties involved in imposing new regulations on extant management cultures, already wedded to systems of control based on physical intimidation, corrupt management, and Panopticon-like means of surveillance
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: PORTAL Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
