ABSTRACT
Taiwan is arguably the most successful practitioner of the export-led growth model, which is an important contributor to the accelerated globalization process of the late twentieth century. It was one of the first countries to adopt this model and to achieve sustained growth rates based on manufacturing for export. Since the late 1970s Taiwan has sought to maintain and strengthen its international competitiveness by adapting its industrial structure to the changes in the global economy. It has moved beyond labor-intensive manufacturing toward a more capital-intensive industrial base and a diversified export structure. Since the mid-1980s, there has also been a rapid increase in overseas investment by Taiwanese firms, primarily in the Southeast Asian economies. This study evaluates the implications of this second-stage or mature phase of Taiwan’s export-led growth strategy for gender wage inequality in manufacturing industry.
