Does Information Technology Induce the De-skilling of Contingent Workers?: Experiences in the Japanese Electrical and Electronic Industry

This paper examines the effect of introduction of information technology driven manufacturing information systems (IT-MIS) to workshops on the usage of contingent workers and subsequent productivity growth based on an unique survey of workshop supervisors of the Japanese electrical and electronic industry. The analysis indicates that the introduction of IT-MIS enhances the variety of tasks performed by contingent workers and induces productivity growth at the workshops. Productivity enhancement at workshops with IT-MIS critically depended on extensive information sharing between regular and contingent workers, as well as between regular workers and designers and/or fabrication engineers. These results indicate that merely introducing IT-MIS does not automatically lead to productivity enhancement. Enhanced productivity depends on the organizational design of communication structures among the affected employees, including contingent workers.