With incentives for green cars expected to run out at the end of next month, Toyota is already preparing for a fall in sales by slashing its workforce in Japan.
The company has cut 600 workers at its Japanese factories. It had hired contract workers under different terms from other employees to make it easier to increase or reduce numbers based on the fluctuating demand for cars – contract workers are typically hired for periods up to two years and 11 months. This means that when their term reaches its conclusion they are either laid off or rewarded with new contracts to become regular workers with increased pay, promotion and so on.
According to Toyota, 160 contract workers were promoted to regular status over the last fiscal year which ended in March, 2010, but it did not say how many of the 600 it has released became regular workers.
It’s a sharp movement from Toyota which has enjoyed increased sales thanks to the government backed incentives – the Prius has been the top selling vehicle in Japan for the last 15 months.
