1. Florence Leou Tac Fong Lisa Potrawiak
Japan and South Korea
Florence Leou Tac Fong
Lisa Potrawiak

2. Summary Introduction Contexts : Economic Political Cultural
The main trends of labour market
The Typical features
Managment policies
Organizational structure and behaviour
The main policies and pratices of human resource managment
Recruitment and selection
Training and development
Rewards and remuneration
Employee relations
Conclusion

3. Introduction Located in Western Asia
Similar culture based on the Confucius spirit
Economy based on the same industries, prosperous thanks to the quality of their human resources managment and the quality of their managment system.
Differ in their economic growth (-5,3% for Japan and 0,3% for South Korea) and in their labour movements and labour organization.
South Korea is more recent and had experienced an economic growth, whereas Japan has been a powerful country for a long time

4. Contexts
Economics :
Known as the largest and most technologically advanced producers and expoters of automobiles, computers, wireless telecommunications equipment
Both are limited in raw materials
During the WWII, Japan developped a strong manufacturing base but nowadays they tend to develop the services industry
South Korea was an agricultural country but shifts into an industrialized nation
The first investor in South Korea are the US (50%), followed by Japan (20%)

5. Political :
Japan : a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government, leads by the Prime Minister
South Korea : democratic republican state leads by an elected president, since violent civilian protests in the 1990s.
South Korean government plays a central part in employee relations and has a significant consequence on the policy and practice of managment
Civilian protests : due to a succession of military leaders seized power

6. Culture :
Influenced by Conciusanism : values of harmony, conformity, avoiding conflict, and maintaining long-term relationships
Human relationships organized vertically : hierarchy of duties and responsabilities from the gorvernment down to the simple person
Strong importance to the role of the group rather than that of the individual : powerful influence on employee relations, business operations and managment practices
Vertically : way to talk to someone according to their age, status, gender, qualification, rank
Role of the group : someone who works on his own is seen as an outcast

7. The main trends of labour market
Strong, skilled, loyal and hardworking worforce especially in industry and services
Work more than any other country (46 hours/week for Japan, more than 40 hours/weeks)
Japan : loyal to their company rather than to owners or managers which is not the case in South Korea
Decrease in employment in the agricultural sector
Rise in the services sector
Asian Cultures : despite of their loyalty, their are not alwaoys satisfied with their company because personal desires do not interfere with company loyalty

8. A low level of unemployment
2 roles in employment : men are the breadwinners and women are the home and family caretakers.
Female employment : most of women are not employed or do not want to be employed because of their role in the family
People live long and there are more and more elders so we can see an increase of the proportion of 55-year-working people.
Moving from full-time employment to flexible employment

9. The typical features Managment policies : Quality
Having clear mechanisms for consultation, communication and decison- makings (the ringi system)
Paternalistic leadership style
Relative job security

10. Organizational structure and behaviour :
Almost all the companies are conglomerates which are generally transmitted from father to son.
When they talk to eachother, they are really formal according to their rank, but they consider the team workers family.

11. Policies and pratices of HRM
Recruitment and selection
They hire generalists rather than specialists like friends, family through word of mouth (more common in South Korea)
Most of the managers of the larges companies are members of one family or they come from the same region.
They prefer non-experienced people because they are adaptable
They also recruit through universities and colleges (examinations and interviews)
They look for their personnality (sincerity, diligence and determination) but also through their educational background

12. Training and development :
They trained the new employees to acquire the knowledge and skills to do the job
They attend continuous trainings to learn the company values, history and culture, but also the rules (3-6 months for SK)
And they do job rotations, so they can pratice under the supervision of more experienced and older employees
They do not learn a specific job but company-specific skills, because they are expected to stay with one employ
Many large organizations have their own training centres
They see all the trainings as a quality improvment and a good investment rather than a cost
Employees want to develop themselves, so they attend evening courses
But now withe international trades, they tends to look for skilled employees rather than generalist

13. Rewards and remuneration :
Japan : wages are determined at the oragnizational level as agreed between the managment and the company union
South Korea : wages are determined at the national and organizational levels
Minimum wage in Japan : varies accprding to industry and region
Minimum wage in South Korea : national and is revised annually by taking into consideration the price index. But most of them do not work for minimum wage because the average hourly rate is higher tahn the minimum one.
Rewards vary according to the size, industry an type of employment
They have bonus due to their seniority and to the related performance (zero-sum, plus- sum) which is not completly applied because of the culturally anchored seniority-based pay
The companies want to adopt the performance appraisal methods but managers do not want to give bad companies

14. Employee relations – Trade Unions
Japan : constitutional right to organize trade unions, to bargain with managment for better pay and working conditions, and to go on strike when necessary
South Korea : all employee relations are stated codes of practice and statutes. The Government uses those laws to control labour organization ans operations.
Enterprise Unions :
Majority of trade unions are enterprise-based
Have a limited role ahd has little influence in descision-making

15. Collective negociation : Japan :
Happens during the spring
When agreements are reached, they last for three years
Plays a small role in Japan
South Korea :
Widely practised
Deal acceptable valid for 2 years

16. Strikes : Japan : South Korea :
Very rare because of the costs, the culture, the long time the courts take to settle a dispute
South Korea :
Strikes are widespread
But there are many conditions : ir has to be voted, the administraive authorities have to be informed, it has to improve workind condition or the income level, and they are not supposed to be violent

17. Conclusion Way of working very similar because of their culture
Work as a group
Seniority importance
Gender inequality
Commited to their companies or managers