On Wednesday, April 1, Japan's biggest steelmaker Nippon Steel Corp., announced its plans to furlough over 1,4000 employees at five of its steel mills in Japan for one or two days a month, beginning this month, due to weak demand for automotive and construction materials.
In a statement on the proposed furloughs, Nippon Steel said, "The first such measure in nine years will affect the steelmaker's Muroran Works in Hokkaido Prefecture, its Kamaishi Works in Iwate Prefecture, Tokyo Works and Sakai Works in Osaka Prefecture, and Hikari Pipe and Tube Division in Yamaguchi Prefecture."
The 1,400-plus affected employees will receive 85 percent of their pay on the days off. Nippon Steel will apply for the Japanese government's ‘employment adjustment subsidies' to soften production cuts. The company said that the additional days off, part of efforts to reduce output, would remain in place for the time being, with furloughs at additional sites a possibility depending on demand.
In addition, Nippon Steel's 54 directors, auditors and corporate executive officers will take 16 percent pay cuts for three months starting in April.