일본 경제에 미치는 영향이 매우 큰 기업임에도 불구하고 이러한 흐름으로 진행되면 앞으로 일본을 탈출할 수 있다는 발언이었다.

▲Professor Kim Pil-su, Department of Future Automobile Engineering, Daerim University
“Toyota Chairman’s ‘Escape from Japan’ Statement: It’s Not Someone Else’s Problem”
Japanese government delays related to certification manipulation… “ Toyota may leave Japan ” warning statement
Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors Unions’ Negative Sentiment Widespread… Is Labor-Management Coexistence in the Shell Okay?
Recently, Japanese car manufacturers have been in an uproar over certification manipulation issues.
The certification manipulation issue that started in Toyota subsidiaries Hino and Daihatsu in the latter half of last year has expanded to Toyota models such as Lexus.
This has spread to become an ethical issue for Japanese manufacturers as other manufacturers, such as Honda and Mazda, are also involved.
Automobile certification is the most basic procedure that affects overall quality, including safety, fuel efficiency, and exhaust emissions.
The reason consumers trust and buy is because they trust this official certification process.
Toyota's certification manipulation is to deploy the airbag at the moment of impact in the event of a collision. It can be said that all possible illegal methods were mobilized, including methods for improving fuel efficiency and pedestrian protection materials.
Of course, the reasons are cost and time.
It is interpreted that unreasonable methods were used on site to save costs and complete the certification process especially in time for the launch of a new car.
Toyota's quality management, which had been based on quality for decades, collapsed in an instant in the global market.
It has no significant impact on the global market.
This is a different flow from the situation that hit the global market, centered around the United States, at the time of Volkswagen Dieselgate.
The reason I think this is because similar practices among global manufacturers are so prevalent that consumers have already become tired and accustomed to them, and another reason is the Japanese government's announcement that it is still investigating even though the issue has already been made known.
I think that as important issues become longer, media interest decreases and the original issue is naturally covered by other important issues.
The Japanese government's quiet but detailed investigation will hurt Toyota's pride and have huge internal repercussions.
It is damaging Toyota's self-esteem for its Just In Time and Toyota Production System (TPS), and is also affecting its credibility in the global market.
In this situation, the recent remarks by Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman Akio are attracting attention.
This is because it is heard as a warning that Japan may leave depending on the situation and move its headquarters.
Despite being a company with a huge impact on the Japanese economy, this trendThe statement was that if things go as planned, it would be possible to escape Japan in the future.
Compared to the fact that existing Japanese businessmen are extremely cautious about making public statements, Chairman Akio's remarks seem to have been very strong.
Japanese Toyota Motors are different in quality from typical Japanese companies.
Even in a situation where global companies are going overseas, Toyota is the company with the strongest image as a national company, with the keynote being that it must have factories in the country first and foremost and always maintain its workforce.
In fact, it can be said that the company's will was the strongest.
So, while companies like Nissan Motors prefer overseas factories with a dependency of more than 80% on overseas production, Toyota is a company that has argued that at least 50% of employment must be maintained within the country.
This is a company that has tried to maintain the ability to link high wages, etc. by keeping luxury brands such as Lexus in the country while moving mass-market brands such as Toyota to overseas factories.
The fact that such remarks came from the head of a representative Japanese company is a very serious matter.
If such a statement had come from Hyundai Motor Group, a leading company in our country, it would have caused a huge stir, to the point of holding a National Assembly hearing.
Toyota also boasts a globally representative model of stable labor-management relations.
In the early 1950s, there was a serious aftereffect when the union went on strike due to extreme labor-management issues, destroying everything.
With the experience of extreme damage to both labor and management, the company has developed into a company that is considerate of each other and has not had a single union strike in the past 70 years.
There is no such risk of labor and management The remarks by Toyota's chairman came as the fallout from the current certification manipulation issue grew.
It is a warning statement to the Japanese government and economy, but at the same time, there is a tendency to view it as a one-time remark.
This situation has some implications for us.
Because the labor-management rift that does not exist in Toyota, Japan, is a serious problem that always makes us feel like we are walking on thin ice.
Currently, with financial stability and a high surplus structure, it can be said that the union strike is covered with money, but when the situation becomes difficult, both sides will have to tighten their belts and make concessions, and there is always concern about whether the union will actually make concessions.
There are many serious demands in labor-management negotiations centered around Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors, to the point where negative public sentiment always dominates opinions.
If you look at each of the union's demands, there are more items that they want to take away before the company goes bankrupt.
It is a situation on thin ice where the concept of self-restraint has already been lost and the concept of labor-management coexistence is only superficial.
As the possibility of Trump being elected as US president grows, the global market is heading towards a further crisis.
In a situation where country-first thinking is severe, the market is now becoming one in which it is difficult to even sell without building a factory and entering the country directly.
For us, who export three out of four vehicles overseas, the sense of crisis is growing, and as the future transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to electric vehicles becomes more ambiguous, our concerns are growing.
There are many more factors that could escalate into a serious situation like the one mentioned by Toyota's chairman.
Current statusThe most serious problem for large domestic companies, including Daewoo Group, is labor-management stability.
In particular, the demands of the union, which are making unreasonable demands, have already gone too far and are now in a 'no matter what' situation.
Companies are not volunteer organizations and must make large profits, but the future global market is not easy.
If the situation worsens, domestic factories will leave as more workers move overseas, which will lead to the hollowing out of domestic industries, which could ultimately lead to a loss of jobs.
I hope that we can design the future by seriously recognizing that without companies, there are no unions.
I hope that we can take the current remarks of the chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation as a lesson and look to the future in a bigger way.