This book examines the most recent transformations in the automobile industry. In particular it analyzes the impact of the new forms of industrial restructuring on production organization and the organization of labor and employee relations within Fiat in Italy, Volkswagen in Brazil and Renault and MCC/Smart in France. These case studies illustrate the most recent radical changes in the industry (outsourcing and modular organisation) and show how they have affected lean production.
Author(s): Valeria Pulignano, Paul Stewart, Andy Danford, Mike Richardson
Edition: First Edition
Year: 2008
Language: English
Pages: 224
Contents......Page 6
List of Figures......Page 8
List of Tables......Page 10
Notes on the Contributors......Page 12
Introduction: ‘Flexibility’ at Work. Critical Developments in the International Automobile Industry......Page 16
Part I: Developments in the International Car Industry: The Comparative Perspective......Page 30
1 Bureaucracy Transcended? New Patterns of Employment Regulation and Labour Control in the International Automotive Industry......Page 32
2 Lean Production and Quality of Working Life on the Shop Floor: The Experience of British and Italian Car Workers......Page 60
3 Lean Production: The Original Myth Reconsidered......Page 98
Part II: Developments in the International Car Industry: The National-based Perspective......Page 120
4 Scope for Policymaking in a Globalised Economy: The Case of Car Assembly in Belgium......Page 122
5 From Lean Production to Mass Customisation: Recent Developments in the Australian Automotive Industry......Page 142
6 Labour Relations in the Modular System: Ten Years of the VW Experience at Resende, Brazil......Page 166
7 The Quest for Flexibility in the Mexican Auto Parts Industry: Three Tales from a Multinational Company......Page 188
B......Page 210
F......Page 211
L......Page 212
P......Page 213
T......Page 214
W......Page 215
