Commentary
Re-evaluating Japan’s seniority system
What is performance-related pay?
2003 Volume 2 Issue 8 Pages 339-366
Details
2003 Volume 2 Issue 8 Pages 339-366
Japan’s employment system is fundamentally not a system that rewards workers with a salary; rather its rewards are based on the next job. The work content itself functions as a motivation, which is the most natural model from the perspective of intrinsic motivation theory. On the other hand, the salary-based system in Japanese companies is less about motivation and more about implementing a salary curve to meet the cost of living. These two aspects have supported Japan’s economic growth, and it is now time to return to the basics: protecting the livelihood of employees and reinstituting an employment system that rewards workers according to the content and appeal of the job.
