Precarious Work in Asia:

Introductory Remarks

Arne L. KallebergUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chung-Ang University--July 19, 2011

Overview

Conceptualizing Precarious Work

The Growth of Precarious Work

The Importance of Studying Precarious Work

Need for Comparative Studies

Precarious Work

Work that is:Insecure UncertainRisks borne by workersLimited income and benefitsLittle potential for better jobs

Examples:Temporary work (Formal economy)Informal economy work

Precarity as Loss(Developed countries)

Loss of:

labor rights historically won by unions and workers’ movements.

stable employment relationships and employment protections due to legalization of temporary, part-time and training contracts.

welfare protections such as health insurance and reductions in unemployment benefits associated with transformations in labor conditions and labor contracts such as: from full-time to part-time, from permanent to temporary jobs, etc.

Standard Employment Relationship

Pillars: Bilateral Employment

Relation Standardized Hours Continuous Employment

Psychological Contract Access to

Regulatory protections Training Careers

(Adult Male Citizens)

Macro Changes

Pressures for Greater Flexibility

Employer & State

Responses

Precarious WorkSERSER

Shift in Employment Norms

COUNTRY DIFFERENCES

Polanyi’s “Double Movement” (U.S.)

1800

2010

1930

1975

Flexibility Security

Precarious Work

Uncertainty

SER > Growth; > Certainty

A New Social Contract???

Precarious Work

Uncertainty

On-Call, Fixed Term

Temp

Org B

Organization A

Contractor

Org C

Some Nonstandard Employment Relations

Precarity as Informal Economy Labor in the Informal Sector

Informal self-employed (street vendors, homeworkers), Informal employees (domestic workers), Migrant workers

Informal labor in formal sector (atypical workers not protected by regulatory framework) THA workers, contracted workers

De-facto informal labor (formal workers in informal economy who have no power to obtain the rights to whcih they are entitled) Workers in developing countries with no union, part-timers

(D.O. Chang, 2009)

Individual

Outcomes

Consequences of Precarious Work

Precarious Work

Family

Outcomes

Economic Insecurity & Inequality

Community Outcomes

COUNTRY DIFFERENCES

Need for Comparative Research

Cross-national studies are necessary in order to:

account for the diversity of precarious work (types of nonstandard work, informal work)

understand impacts of institutions and cultures

Studying Precarious Work in 10 Asian Countries

China India Indonesia Japan Philippines South Korea Sri Lanka Taiwan Thailand Vietnam

More developed countries:Nonstandard work

arrangements (e.g., temporary, contract work)

Less developed countries: Informal economy

Research Questions

What does “precarious work” mean in the different countries?

What statistics on PW are available? What are the estimates of the extent/trends in PW?

Who is doing research on PW in the country? Case illustrating the nature of PW in country? What strategies might reduce PW in country? Other important information about PW in

country?

Goals of the Workshop

Share information about precarious work in the various countries

Develop a common framework for studying precarious work

Identify key issues for comparative analysis Develop a strategy for moving forward Set date for next conference, at UNC-Chapel Hill