Japanese See People as Top Problem
In an unusual acknowledgement of a “people problem” at their manufacturing plants, Japanese managers in the United States said labor and personnel affairs are the most troublesome issues that they face, according to a new survey by a Japanese government agency.
To date, most Japanese companies in the United States have shied away from publicly taking on workplace issues. They have quietly settled lawsuits brought by disgruntled workers, minimized friction on union organizing attempts at some plants and largely not addressed complaints of American executives at Japanese firms.
“This time we were surprised that the most frequently mentioned problem had to do with labor, employment and personnel issues,” said Mitsuo Takii, executive director of the New York office of the Japan External Trade Organization, or Jetro, which conducted the ninth annual survey of Japanese-affiliated manufacturers in the United States. “Compared to 1988, the instability of the exchange rate was more of an issue then.”
More than a quarter of the 505 Japanese managers responding to a question about management problems cited difficulties in securing and training a good work force. Another 9.5% cited differences in thinking and customs between Japan and the United States. “From this, it may be safe to say that the largest issue facing Japanese managers in this country was the ‘people problem,’ ” the survey said.
In the 1989 survey, participants were asked to write in their responses to the question. The previous year, they were given a list of 14 possible answers. In 1988, the three most frequently cited concerns were instability of the exchange rate, quality control and difficulty in finding quality labor.
The survey covered only U.S. manufacturing plants owned or affiliated with Japanese companies. It did not cover Japanese firms in banking, insurance, real estate, financial services, travel and other service-related industries.
However, a study released last October by the University of Michigan revealed that American managers at Japanese corporations felt excluded from planning and decision making inside their firms and complained about limited access to strategic information.
The Jetro survey showed a total of 1,043 Japanese-owned manufacturing plants in the United States in 1989, compared to 837 in 1988 and 550 in 1987. Nearly 60% of the plants were established after 1985 in the wake of the sharp appreciation of the yen and in response to criticism that Japanese firms were taking jobs away from Americans.
The plants employed about 200,000 in 1989, up from 180,000 in 1988 and 140,000 in 1987.
Japanese manufacturers are located in 45 states and in Puerto Rico, but they tend to cluster in 10 states. California had the largest number with 202; followed by 78 in Illinois, 74 in Georgia, 63 in Ohio, 54 in Michigan, 45 in New Jersey, 43 in Texas, 36 in Washington, 35 in Indiana and 35 in Kentucky.
The survey showed that procurement of U.S. parts and materials was up, even though about 13.9% listed problems in procurement of parts and materials.
