Welfare through Work: Conservative Ideas, Partisan Dynamics, and Social Protection in Japan
"Mari Miura's book presents an in-depth and detailed approach to the politics of social protection in times of political and economic challenges. This book turns our attention to controversial but important social and political tasks not only in Japan but also in many advanced industrialized countries, most of which have confronted rising inequalities over the past few decades. It will be required reading for years as a valuable addition to the study of Japanese politics, of social protection in advanced industrialized countries, and of the role of ideas in explaining policy changes."—Jiyeoun Song,Pacific Affairs(March 2014)"The subject of this book is the Japanese government's practice of promoting and protecting employment in lieu of offering generous programs of unemployment insurance and social assistance for the poor.... Mari Miura uses the apt phrase 'welfare through work' to characterize this system....Welfare through Workmakes a valuable contribution to the understanding of Japan's labor market and social protection politics."—Gregory J. Kasza,Journal of Japanese Studies(Winter 2014)"InWelfare through Work, Mari Miura tells a compelling story about the role of labor policy in the broader question of social protection in Japan. She focuses on the changing interests and ideologies of political parties and how they affected politicians' thinking about the nation’s problems and appropriate solutions."—John Creighton Campbell, Emeritus Professor of Political Science, University of Michigan, author ofHow Policies Change: The Japanese Government and the Aging Society"Mari Miura takes the pulse of Japan's system of welfare through work and offers the best account I have read of how economic, ideational, and political forces have combined to make it increasingly dysfunctional. For the sake of Japan’s workers, one can only hope that the nation’s leaders learn from her book and figure out how to marshal new ideas to win political support for needed reforms."—Leonard Schoppa, University of Virginia, author ofRace for the Exits: The Unraveling of Japan's System of Social Protection"Through a skillful and well-written analysis of the intersection of social welfare policy, employment structures, and Japan's gendered society, Mari Miura'sWelfare through Workprovides key insights into how the Japanese political economy functioned in the heyday of its economic boom and also why it began to fail in the 1990s. This forceful book should be read by every student of Japanese political economy."—Sven Steinmo, European University Institute, author ofThe Evolution of Modern States: Sweden, Japan, and the United States