Truth of Nissan's 'revival'

Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro, who gives "structural reform" top priority, applauded the "successful" cost-cutting restructuring of Nissan Motor Company.

This was at a pre-election discussion by political party leaders, organized by the Japan National Press Club on July 11.

Referring to the major workforce cut of 14,000, Koizumi praised Nissan President Carlos Ghosn, who was sent in from the French company Renault, for putting the car company into the black with no workers being left jobless.

Apparently, the prime minister was trying to sell his "structural reform" plans by citing the example of Mr. Ghosn's "success."

However, many doubt that this is a success story. The July 21 issue of daily Akahata reported the hidden aspects of Carlos Ghosn's "revival plan" for Nissan.

Dismissals to employees; big raises to execs' compensation

Suzuki Shintaro of the All-Japan Metal and Information Machinery Workers' Union (JMIU) said that Nissan's profitability has increased not because its car sales have risen but because it has closed down plants, eliminated unprofitable units, dismissed many workers, cut unit costs of subcontractors, and sold out its assets.

He added that the burden of the "reform" imposed on employees and the local community is increasingly unbearable.

The Murayama Plant in Tokyo was all but closed on March 31 and the 2,400 workers left the plant: 680 were transferred to the Oppama Plant (Kanagawa) and 870 to the Kamiminokawa Plant (Tochigi). A little more than 200 workers remain in the office. The remaining 500 left Nissan to seek jobs elsewhere.

Even those who agreed to move to the two distant plants now have to endure bitter conditions. Most of them have left their families in Murayama. Their overtime work has increased. A worker was found dead in a company dormitory.

By contrast, company executives received a major rise in their salaries. The shareholders meeting last June approved the raising of the ceiling of their pay by 200 million yen or nearly 1.6 million dollars (on average).

Severe damage to local economy

Subcontractors as well as the plant's cafeteria operator, trucking companies, and other businesses related to the car assembly plant are all hard hit. The number of full-time workers, part time workers and contingent workers in these local businesses are estimated to be several times higher than that of Murayama plant employees.

A restaurant owner said that about 95 percent of its customers were related to Nissan. Now he's thinking of moving. He said, "Mr. Koizumi is asking us to endure pain but the pain is already unbearable. I don't know what to live on from now on."

There are many vacant apartments, and two out of three convenience stores have folded up.

The Nissan Murayama plant will disappear in 2004, leaving the local governments concerned with serious financial problems. The local governments' tax revenues will drop hundreds of millions of yen (several million dollars). They will also have to shoulder the extra burden of building infrastructure for the redevelopment of the plant site. (end)