Nissan announces job cuts in Japan as market slumps
25 Apr 2007
Mumbai:
Japan''s third-biggest automaker, Nissan Motor Co., has
announced a voluntary retirement programme for its employees
in Japan, to cut up to 1,500 blue and white-collar jobs
amid a shrinking domestic market.
The scheme, to start in June, will be open to workers
aged 45 and above in non-managerial posts, a Nissan spokesman
said.
Nissan has seen its domestic sales of non-mini vehicles
plummet in the face of tough competition in a shrinking
market, forcing the company to announce a cutback in production
at two domestic car plants from April to June.
The company also closed down one of three lines at another
factory, in southern Japan, last September due to slow
sales of the Teana high-end sedan
Nissan, held 44 per cent by Renault SA of France, launched
few new models last year.
It also recently cut jobs in the US, where its sales slumped
last year, where it said 775 workers at two Tennessee
plants had accepted voluntary retirement last month.
Chief executive Carlos Ghosn had promised last month to
draw up additional measures to help Nissan meet its targets
under a three-year plan, but the company has missed the
targets.
Nissan slashed its annual profit forecast after seeing
a 22 per cent slump in earnings in the October-December
quarter.
The backtracking forced Ghosn, once credited for saving
Nissan from bankruptcy, to declare his company in a "performance
crisis."
Earlier this month, Nissan said it may miss a key sales
target it aimed to hit next fiscal year, in another blow
to Ghosn''s comeback plans.
Nissan is aiming to sell 4.2 million vehicles globally
in the fiscal year ending March 2009 as part of a three-year
revival plan.
But
weak performance last year, blamed on a dearth of new
models in North America and sluggish sales in Japan, may
mean it might take longer to meet the target, said a Nissan
spokeswoman who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Nissan is due to announce full-year results and updates
to the "Nissan Value-up" business plan on April
26.
