Skip to main content

“Limited Regular Employees” and Boundary of Employment: An Analysis by the Three-Layered Labor Market Model

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Japanese Management in Change

Abstract

This chapter insists that it is possible to set up new classifications of “utilized non-regular employee” and “limited regular employee” as intermediate labor markets aside from the “regular employee” in the internal labor markets, which is historically recognized in Japanese companies; non-regular employees are recognized in the external labor market. Here, the “limited regular employee” refers to an employee whose employment period is indefinite (with limitations on the working place, type of job, and working hours). The “regular employees” supported Japanese management, but “non-regular employees” are playing a very important role in the management activities of today’s Japanese companies. This chapter indicates the possibility of further classification of “regular employees” instead of generalizing them in one segment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    Employment category is a mechanism used to divide employees (including non-regular employees) into several groups to ensure efficient and effective development, securement, utilization, and treatment. It involves HR management suitable to respective groups (Imano 2010).

  2. 2.

    Please refer the survey report edited by Kobe University et al. (2009) for further details.

  3. 3.

    The question used by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare to categorize employees who work limited amounts of hours in its survey states, “The specified hours of labor are relatively shorter than the hours of labor required for other employment categories in the same company” or “Employees are not required overtime works that are specified in the current rule and labor contract.”

References

  • Atkinson, J. A. (1985). Flexibility, uncertainty, and manpower management. IMS Report, No.89, Brighton: Institute of Manpower Studies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baron, J. N., & Kreps, D. M. (1999). Strategic human resources: Frameworks for general managers. New York: John Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Doeringer, P. B., & Piore, M. J. (1971). Internal labor market and manpower analysis. Lexington, MA: D.C. Health and Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Genda, Y. (2008). Irregular employment as the lower tier of internal labor market. Economic Review, 59(4), 340–356 (In Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibbons, R. S., & Murphy, K. J. (1992). Optimal incentive contracts in the presence of career concerns: Theory and evidence. Journal of Political Economy, 100, 468–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hirano, M. (2010). Three-layered labor market – Diversification of employment categories and equal treatment. Organizational Science, 44(2), 30–43 (In Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirano, M. (2011). Diversification of employment categories in Japanese firms and its functionality: A study based on the human resource portfolio system. In R. Bebenroth & T. Kanai (Eds.), Challenges of human resource management in Japan (pp. 188–209). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hisamoto, N. (2003). Regular employee renaissance – From diverse employment to diverse regular employees. Tokyo: Chuko Shinsho (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hisamoto, N. (2010). Seishain (regular employees): Definition and origin. Quarterly Journal of Public Policy & Management (2), 19–40 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Imano, K. (2010). Increasing diversity of employment and HRM. Japanese Journal of Labour Studies, (597), 48–51 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Kobe University, KIMPS and JMA. (2009). Survey on human resources management to arouse creativity and results report of the survey on human resources management to support creativity of the development division. Kobe University Discussion Paper, 2009, 26 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare. (2012). Report of the study group on various forms of regular employees in Japan (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Morishima, M. (2011). Diverse regular employees and non-regular employment, Research Institute of Economy, Trade & Industry (RIETI), Discussion Paper Series 11-J-057 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Nishimura, T., & Morishima, M. (2009). Diversification of internal labor market and determinative factors. Japanese Journal of Labour Studies, (586), 20–33 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato, H. (2008). Diversifying employment categories and balancing wages across employment categories. Organizational Science, 41(3), 22–32 (In Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato, H. (2012). Limited regular employees and unlimited non-regular employees – A new issue of personnel management. Collected Research Papers of the No. 42 National Convention of Japan Society of Human Resource Management, pp. 201–208 (In Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsuru, K. (2011). Overhead view for solving problems of non-regular employment – Toward the reform of fixed-term employment. Research Institute of Economy, Trade & Industry (RIETI), Discussion Paper Series 11-J-049 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Williamson, O. E. (1985). The economic institutions of capitalism: Firms, markets, relational contracting. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williamson, O. E. (1996). The mechanisms of governance. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mitsuthoshi Hirano .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 Springer Japan

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Hirano, M. (2015). “Limited Regular Employees” and Boundary of Employment: An Analysis by the Three-Layered Labor Market Model. In: Kambayashi, N. (eds) Japanese Management in Change. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-55096-9_9

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics