Current location:Stellar Signals news portal > travel
EDITORIAL: Nissan rebuke shows preying on suppliers still exists in Japan
Stellar Signals news portal2024-05-01 03:52:19【travel】6People have gathered around
IntroductionNissan Motor Co. has been unilaterally reducing its payments to numerous subcontractors in the illeg
Nissan Motor Co. has been unilaterally reducing its payments to numerous subcontractors in the illegal squeezing of suppliers.
The auto giant has been committing this exploitative act for many years. Such a business practice of exploitation by large companies leveraging their strong positions as contractors to impose their will on subcontractors is inexcusable.
Nissan must clarify the responsibility of its management for the violation and rid itself of “subcontractor bullying.”
Last week, the Fair Trade Commission issued a cautionary notice to Nissan calling on the company to take steps to prevent a recurrence. Nissan was found to have violated the subcontract law for unilaterally reducing the payment amounts from the originally agreed prices under the guise of “rebates.”
According to the antitrust watchdog, over a period of about two years until last spring, Nissan reduced the amounts due to 36 subcontractors, including makers of aluminum wheels, by more than 3 billion yen ($20.3 million).
This is the largest case of the kind uncovered by the FTC. This practice of coercive price-cutting to meet Nissan’s cost reduction targets has been ongoing since at least the 1990s.
As a major automaker, Nissan stands at the apex of a pyramid-like subcontracting structure, generating enormous profits as the beneficiary of this setup. It is responsible for ensuring that costs are fairly reflected in prices within its supply chain.
If the company unjustly siphoned profits from its small and midsize suppliers, that was an utterly indefensible act.
Nissan President Makoto Uchida apologized at a March 13 news conference for his company’s violation of the subcontract law. Nissan should review its past and current transactions with subcontractors to identify instances of forced price reductions and clarify responsibility.
It is true that the competitive strength of Japan’s automotive industry has been supported by relentless cost-cutting efforts by both car manufacturers and their suppliers.
However, such efforts must be based on an equitable relationship between automakers and their subcontractors and the benefits should be shared fairly according to the contributions.
Nissan’s exploitation of subcontractors is clearly unacceptable. However, subcontractors are generally in weak positions because they risk massive damage if they lose business dealings with key customers and find it difficult to resist demands for cost reductions from these major clients.
Therefore, businesses placing orders with suppliers have a duty to continually confirm the fairness of their transactions. Nissan’s chief executive should demonstrate the company’s solid commitment to this principle both internally and externally.
The government’s guidelines concerning the issues published last year also call on chief executives to clearly pledge to allow subcontractors to pass along higher costs in the prices.
Shifting burdens onto subcontractors has been one of the factors inhibiting wage increases among small and midsize enterprises.
The goal of realizing the virtuous economic cycle of rising prices and wage hikes, the principal focus of this year’s “shunto” spring labor negotiations, remains elusive without the widespread adoption of fair cost pass-throughs.
Profit generation through cost-cutting has been the primary corporate mantra in Japan for years as the nation’s economy was trapped in deflationary doldrums, but sustainable growth is unattainable if burdens are pushed onto subcontractors and workers.
Alongside wage increases and proactive investments, it is urgent to ensure compliance with laws and improve business practices. The FTC, for its part, must also intensify its monitoring to eradicate the unfair and abusive practice of squeezing subcontractors.
--The Asahi Shimbun, March 14
Address of this article:http://lececoqilutisire.allesfuersjagen.com/news-24c499927.html
Very good!(72)
Related articles
- Former Spain coach Del Bosque to head the commission overseeing beleaguered soccer federation
- Call for schools soft drink ban renewed after government implements cellphone ban
- EDITORIAL: Diet behind the times in dealing with same
- Te Kuiti woman Brownyn Rutter sentenced to home detention after fleecing sister of $1.6m
- HBCU Xavier of New Orleans moves closer to establishing a medical school
- Stricken Japanese Moon mission landed on its nose
- Cuts and closures in New Zealand's news media industry: What you need to know
- What the Green Party knew, and what next for MP Darleen Tana
- Scotland Yard to pay 'five
- Snake entangled in fridge ice dispenser spotted by resident who thought hissing was air compressor
Popular articles
Recommended
Chinese astronauts return to earth after six months in space
Government cuts will hit Pasifika communities hard
Person seriously injured, another dead after Browns Bay assault
UK dog with six legs has operation to remove extra limbs
French cops drag pro
Piers Morgan, Nigella and Oprah Winfrey 'deepfaked' for US influencer's ads
Fire at industrial building in Ōtaki
Government announces animal facial eczema research fund
Links
- Jalen Green has 26 points and Houston cruises to 116
- Skubal throws 5 scoreless innings, Canha homers and Tigers beat Twins 8
- Bryce Miller twirls another gem and leads the Mariners past the Cubs 4
- Biden could miss the deadline for the November ballot in Alabama
- Heim homers with 4 RBIs as Rangers win 12
- Trump’s hush money trial will test Alvin Bragg's efforts at neutrality
- Democrats Daniels and Figures stress experience ahead of next week's congressional runoff
- House passes reauthorization of US spy program after GOP upheaval
- Jalen Green has 26 points and Houston cruises to 116
- Golden Knights beat Wild 7