Law and Labour Market Regulation in East Asia and Southern Africa: Comparative Perspectives

Recent work on East Asian labour law has taken comparative labour law scholarship beyond the question of whether legal 'transplants' may succeed. It has also deployed a framework that could be used to examine labour law in other developing regions of the world. We argue that there are significant similarities between East Asia and Southern Africa, including colonial histories, international influences, and a limited impact of law on labour markets. There are also important differences. These include the labour market effects of HIV/AIDS, Southern Africa's long history of labour migration, and the impact of frameworks to facilitate regional economic integration.