21,309 research outputs found
The case of Foxconn in Turkey: benefiting from free labour and anti-union policy
Starting from the 2000s Foxconn invested in Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary,
Russia and Turkey, implementing a territorial diversification strategy
aimed at getting nearer to its end markets. This chapter investigates the
development of Foxconn in Turkey where the multinational owns a plant
with about 400 workers. A few kilometres from the city of \uc7orlu and close
to highways, ports and international airports, the plant enables Foxconn
to implement an efficient global supply chain. We illustrate this process
by examining the company\u2019s localisation within a special economic zone,
underlining the economic advantages derived from such a tax regime,
bringing labour costs down to the Chinese level and obtaining proximity
to European, North African and Middle East customers, thus lowering
logistic costs. We also analyse the roles of labour flexibility and trade
unions. In order to impose far-reaching flexibility on its workers Foxconn
put in place a range of strategies, including an hours bank system, multitask
operators and the recruitment of apprentices thanks a special
programme funded by the state. We show how these have been crucial
for Foxconn\u2019s just-in-time production contrasting its labour turnover
problem. Finally, we highlight how the company has been able to
implement a flexible working pattern, weaken the trade unions and
undercut workers\u2019 opposition, thanks to favourable labour laws approved
by successive governments in the past thirty years
Introduction
This book investigates restructuring in the electronics industry and in
particular the impact of a \u2018Chinese\u2019 labour regime on work and employ -
ment practices in electronics assembly in Europe.1 Electronics is an
extremely dynamic sector, characterized by an ever-changing organi -
zational structure, as well as cut-throat competition, particularly in
manufacturing. Located primarily in East Asia, electronics assembly has
become notorious for poor working conditions, low unionisation and
authoritarian labour relations. However, hostile labour relations and topdown
HR policies are not unique to East Asia. They have become
associated with the way the sector is governed more broadly, with a
number of Western companies also coming to rely on such practices
Flexible workforces and low profit margins: electronics assembly between Europe and China
This book investigates restructuring in the electronics industry and in
particular the impact of a \u2018Chinese\u2019 labour regime on work and employ -
ment practices in electronics assembly in Europe.1 Electronics is an
extremely dynamic sector, characterized by an ever-changing organi -
zational structure, as well as cut-throat competition, particularly in
manufacturing. Located primarily in East Asia, electronics assembly has
become notorious for poor working conditions, low unionisation and
authoritarian labour relations. However, hostile labour relations and topdown
HR policies are not unique to East Asia. They have become
associated with the way the sector is governed more broadly, with a
number of Western companies also coming to rely on such practices
Transcultural Student Research on SDGs â A Higher Education Project for Sustainable Development
In this paper, presented at the International Conference on Sustainable Development (ICSD 2023), the transcultural student research groups on the SDGs in Southeast Asia are presented as an example of a university project for sustainable development
Firm-level upgrading in low-and-medium-technology industries in emerging markets: the role of learning in networks
This thesis investigates how involvement in networks contributes to firm-level
upgrading in emerging markets. In the 1990s, the international de-localisation of
production and global integration has brought about a process of upgrading for firms in
the transition and latecomer industrialising countries that allowed them to approach the
technological frontier and enhance their competitive position. Hence, the firm-level
upgrading became a process of improving technological and organisational deficiencies
in the firmsâ knowledge base, particularly through knowledge transfer and learning in
networks they have involved in, enabling them to adjust to the new environment by
doing things differently and/or better as well as doing different things.
The literature on upgrading stresses the effects of value chains and production networks
on industrial upgrading, while the role of various learning mechanisms is largely
unexplored. Employing an evolutionary perspective, this thesis contributes to existing
analyses by considering the role of knowledge networks and by using âlearning in
networksâ as a bridging concept, by which the interaction between inter- and intraorganisational
knowledge transfer is demonstrated to have significant bearing on
hastening the process of catching-up in emerging markets. Specifically, this thesis
examines what characteristics of the networks of Polish food-processing and clothing
firms affect learning mechanisms in an inter-organisational context and how these
mechanisms combined with internal factors supporting internalisation of externally
acquired knowledge (including firm strategy orientation) contribute to various types of
firm-level upgrading during the period 1989-2001.
Methodologically, this thesis proposes a dynamic model of firm-level upgrading with a
novel unit of analysis: the relationships of the firm. So, rather than using firm case
studies, it provides statistical evidence typically lacking in the upgrading research,
while not sacrificing the in-depth nature of case studies, as each relationship of the
firms studied has been investigated through face-to-face interviews that are translated
into a dataset of relationships analysed using multinomial logistic regressions.
First, the network-related characteristics of external learning mechanisms were
identified and then used as a reference point in the upgrading analysis. The results for
product upgrading largely confirm the previous findings in the literature. However, the
upgrading of production processes is a function of learning from advances in science
and technology through knowledge networks. Strikingly, learning-by-interacting in
production networks actually appears to impede managerial (rather than functional)
upgrading, a previously unexplored upgrading type, which is also shown to be a prerequisite
for functional upgrading. While learning-by-training and research within the
firm is a potent condition for external learning mechanisms to contribute to all of the
upgrading types, for successful functional upgrading, it is a must. These findings show
the importance of the use of an integrative approach to learning in research on
upgrading
Information Outlook, June 1997
Volume 1, Issue 6https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/sla_io_1997/1005/thumbnail.jp
Womenâs Perceptions of Consequences of Career Interruption due to Childcare in Central and Eastern Europe
The paper aims to examine the effect of the transition from a socialist regime to democracy and liberal economy on womenâs perceptions of the consequences of breaks in labour market participation due to childcare on their further careers in seven post-socialist countries. More precisely, it investigates whether women in Central and Eastern Europe who gave birth to at least one child after 1987 were more likely to experience negative consequences for their further professional life as a result of career interruptions due to childcare than women who had their children during the socialist era. The analysis is conducted in two steps. In the first step, the effect of the political transition is examined in the Central European region as a whole, thus on the pooled data including all the seven countries. In the second step, the paper tests whether the effect of the transition varies significantly from country to country, and if yes, in which countries it had the biggest impact. In both steps, the effect of the transition is examined while controlling for selected individual characteristics that are mentioned in the literature as possible predictors of subjective evaluation of consequences of career breaks on womenâs further professional development. In the paper we use data from the 2004 European Social Survey.female emloyement ; labour market inactivity ; child care ; subjective indicators
The idea of legal convergence and international economic law
The convergence of different legal systems is one of the leading theses in the discipline of law. This paper proposes that international economic law is one of the great sources of inspiration for the coming together of various legal systems around the world. The paper will explore the European Union experience in this respect and it will analyse a number of legal principles which promote the idea of legal convergence in the sphere of international economic law. Furthermore, referral will be made to the organisations promoting the convergence of legal systems such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank Group (WB) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).Auspices of the International Institute for the Sociology of Law, Oñati, Spain - Scientific Direction: Professor Dr Carlos Lista. The project has been conducted as part of postodoctoral research under the 'Juan Celaya' Research Project on Globalisation and Law for which a grant has been received
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