ABSTRACT
Before 1978, with central planning and public ownership of corporations, the core tenets of the Chinese state were full employment, a centralized system of labour recruitment and allocation, lifetime tenure for workers and an acceptance of low labour mobility. In brief there was a huge movement of agricultural labour to urban industries, and from labour-intensive production to higher technology manufacturing. The employment reforms after 1978 focused on wage differentiation, skills training and the enhancement of labour mobility. There is widespread cynicism surrounding Japanese multinationals and their pragmatic attitude towards the transfer of Japanese labour practices and technology. It is possible that social protection systems will need to be adjusted to the specific organizational and ownership character of Chinese firms and their specific labour needs. In order to understand the structure of labour and its productivity, it is necessary now to focus on the corporate structures and institutions in both China and India.
