Atypical employment: A comparison of Japan and the United States

As of February, 1993, nonregular employees accounted for 20.8%
of Japan's total work force;' in the United States, 17.5% of workers
were part-timers. 2 Therefore, part-time employees, temporary workers,
dispatched laborers, and other nonregular, non full-time employees
comprise a significant portion of the labor force of these two countries.
The rise of atypical employment,3 which refers to work other than
regular full-time employment, necessitates an inquiry into the economic
and legal environments in which nonregular employees now live.

This article is a comparative analysis of atypical employment in
Japan and the United States. These two countries have been chosen
because each has a significant nonregular work force and is a developed
nation representing the East and the West, respectively. The discussion here highlights the legal protections which nonregular employees receive
in these countries and the areas of atypical employment requiring greater
regulation.