Taiwan, once one of the world's leading manufacturing economies, is now transforming into a service economy, with an emphasis on knowledge-based services. This metamorphosis has not been easy. As well as major changes in the industrial sector, human resource and policy development have been required, the experiences and implications of which are addressed in this book. Although Taiwan is only in the initial stage of transition from a material- or capital-based economy to a knowledge-based economy, the process has already provided valuable lessons to be learnt. The ramification of transformations in manufacturing, agriculture, finance, services, and the information technology industry are examined and discussed. Tain-Jy Chen and Joseph S. Lee go on to reveal the problems and difficulties that Taiwan has encountered in creating itself a new knowledge based economy, including its outmoded service sector, the inability of businesses to pursue global production and services, and the lack of capacity to create knowledge and to innovate. Providing a discernible insight into the transformation of one of the most prominent newly industrialized countries into a knowledge-based economy, this book will greatly appeal to academics, researchers, and those with a specific interest in knowledge management or Asian economies, as well as to economic analysts.

The debate on whether high standards of labour market legislation affect economic growth and the rate of employment is topical and important. The contributors to this book address three main issues: how Taiwan's labour market was able to work so well prior to 1996, maintaining full employment for the last 40 years, regardless of the rapid change of industrial structure in the 1980s; what factors can be attributed to the rapid deterioration of Taiwan's labour market performance since 1996; the measures adopted by the Taiwan government in tackling the recent high unemployment rate, how effective these policies are and what lessons scholars and public policy makers in other countries can learn from Taiwan's experience. An integrated labour-market model (a revision of the Harris-Todaro dualistic labour market model) is presented which can be used to analyze labour market operation in other developing countries. The effectiveness of various policies adopted by the Taiwanese government in tackling high unemployment rate is examined and the findings shed light on public policies in other developing and newly industrialized countries.The Labour Market and Economic Development of Taiwan will appeal to scholars of Asian studies, public policy, economic development and labour economists.