The System of Wage-Setting Japan

Seminar paper from the year 2002 in the subject Business economics - Personnel and Organisation, grade: 2.4 (B), University of Manchester (Manchester School of Management), 43 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: How and to what extend do labour systems in general, and wage-setting mechanisms in particular, differ amongst the three biggest economies of the world, namely Japan, Germany, and the United States? Does the trend towards increasing trade liberation lead to pressure to harmonise different wage-setting systems? If so, what is the evidence for convergence?1 What impact could this have on the future of the labour systems of the so-called less flexible countries? These are the questions that this paper will attempt to address on the following pages. While limited in scope, it will attempt to shine a light, however brief, on the above issues, and offer a conclusion that will take into account both the facts presented and a possible future scenario. Specifically, chapter two to four will briefly highlight the main characterises that influence wage-setting in Japan, Germany, and the United States respectively. Chapter five will consider issues of convergence and divergence, in general terms and also more countryspecific. Finally, chapter six will sum up the main findings of this report, and offer a view on the possible future of the convergence debate.