Renault-Nissan to cut around 1,000 jobs at its Chennai factory

Most of them are working on contracts in the shop-floor

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has decided to reduce the numbers of workers at its Oragadam factory, about 50 km from here. This comes in the backdrop of a drop in sales.

Company sources and workers have said around 1,000 people, mostly contract workers, would lose their jobs.

While refusing to comment on the numbers, a spokesperson of Nissan said “India is a dynamic market. To adapt to the volatile business environment and consistent to our strategy, Renault-Nissan is continuously adapting to market needs, to optimise manufacturing operations”.

Adding: “Renault-Nissan has made significant investment in India to establish a world-class manufacturing plant, catering to the Nissan, Datsun and Renault brands for both domestic and export requirements.”

According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam), the company (Nissan) in 2014-15 had sold 47,474 cars. In April 2015, first month of this financial year, it sold 4,259 units, which dropped to 3,681 units in May, 3,357 in June and then 2,841 in July. Its French partner also reported a drop in sales. In April, the company sold 4,001 units, which dropped to 3,601 units the next month. June saw a rise to 4,340 and then came a drastic drop in July to 1,686 units.

Around 7,000-8,000 people work in the factory, of which around 6,000 are on the rolls. The others are contract workers.