Changing the rules of the game

In his seminal work on the development of the labour market in Japan, Kōji Taira noted that a general policy of inaction suggested the government’s preference for a free labour market throughout the years of industrialisation up until the Pacific War, ¹ and it is true that the government in Japan was in some respects slow to follow the leadership offered by European and North American countries in areas such as protective legislation. Officials often proved reluctant to intervene in the labour–management relationship, and faced considerable opposition when they did so. However, regulation of the female labour market was both attempted and implemented by the authorities. Groups of intellectuals and academics, journalists and other individuals with an interest in social policy, all played a significant role in influencing this regulation, but much of the impetus was generated from within the bureaucracy itself. Local and national officials became deeply concerned with what they saw as the abuses stemming from unfettered market operation. The pressure for action was strengthened by the youth and gender of the textile workforce, and the legislation conceived and implemented in this same spirit.