Changing employment relations in the Asia-Pacific region

Abstract

This paper compares the employment relations of Australia; Indonesia; Japan; New Zealand; the Peoples' Republic of China (PRC); South Korea; and Taiwan (Republic of China, ROC). The inclusion of the older industrialised economies of Australia, New Zealand and Japan with the industrialising and newly industrialised countries of Asia enables comparisons of labour market restructuring for increased flexibility. In South Korea the process of democratisation has included a reduction in state regulation of trade unions. In Taiwan the same process has led government to become more active in employment relations, and the PRC's transition from a highly regulated to a 'socialist market' economy has had a noticeable effect on employment relations too. In Indonesia, the end of the Soharto regime might have offered opportunities for greater recognition of workers' interests, but political instability and the effect of the 1997 Asian economic crisis seem to have inhibited this development.