勤労感謝の日 Kinrō Kansha no Hi. This Japanese holiday was established in 1948 as an occasion for praising labor and celebrating production. Prior to the establishment of this holiday, November 23 was celebrated as an imperial harvest festival called Niiname-sai (新嘗祭). Let’s celebrate by reading a non-fiction book about Japan.
Office Ladies and Salaried Men: Power, Gender and Work in Japanese Companies - Yuko Ogasawara.
In large Japanese corporations, female clerical workers, known as OLs (office ladies), perform tasks such as copying, data entry, and serving tea. They are not part of the lifetime employment system and receive no job training, limiting their chances for promotion.
This 1998 ethnography argues that OLs resist male authority, both covertly and overtly. Men depend on OLs for clerical support, and their performance appraisals are influenced by their ability to manage OLs without conflict. OLs can hinder men’s productivity and career advancement if not treated well.
Ogasawara, in her PhD research, worked as an OL in a Tokyo bank, using participant observation and interviews with bankers, their wives, and OLs. She highlights the hierarchical nature of Japanese society, where OLs’ status differences prevent them from uniting for better conditions. University-educated women often face discrimination from less-educated colleagues with longer tenure.
OLs use strategies like gossip, refusal to work, and gift-giving to manipulate their work environment. Valentine’s Day chocolates, for example, signal how well men meet OL expectations. The book provides insights into gender relations and workplace dynamics in Japan, despite some ethical concerns about the research methods.
The weak point of the book is that while there is little discussion of gender there is none of sex. OL’s are usually in their 20s and single. It is not far-fetched that they would use their youth, looks, and desirability to play middle-aged bankers like pinball machines. Little wonder why men fulfill the expectation that they bring office ladies omiyage (souvenirs such as scarves of Thai silk) from foreign trips, regularly supply office ladies with snacks to eat in the break room, and take them out for lunches and dinners. Plus right up there with high school girls in sailor suits, the uniformed OL is a not uncommon figure in Japanese porn (not that I'm a connoisseur, mind you). Another lack of the book is the absence of any discussion of sexual harassment. I suppose we could conclude that it didn't exist in that particular bank and so a discussion was beyond the scope of the book. But it still would have been interesting if the interviewees had been asked about this phenomenon.
Overall, though by now the late Nineties is a long time ago, I think this book is worth reading if a reader is interested in gender relations, women's studies, or organizational behavior in Japan. The strong points of this book are it gives a look into a world not studied much before and challenges stereotypes of the exploited powerless OL’s. Though a PhD dissertation, it is written clearly with a minimum of the jargon of anthropologists, sociologists or management scientists (despite the title there is, mercifully, little talk of gender). The book supplies many real-life examples to support her assertions. Anybody interested in Japanese office life, organizational behavior or the resistance of oppressed groups should get much out of this book.
No comments:
Post a Comment