Changes in work and production organisation in the automotive industry value chain: an evaluation of the responses by labour in South Africa
Date
2010-06-30T11:27:32Z
Authors
Mashilo, Alex Mohubetswane
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Abstract
ABSTRACT
This research report examines the changing nature of the organisation of work and
production methods in the South African automotive industry through an examination of
the global production network of a leading automotive company, BMW. It draws on
Marxist theory of the transformation of the labour process and extends this theory to
include the contemporary restructuring of the automotive industry through the
introduction of global production networks. It is argued that, while this logistical
revolution has increased productivity, it has also opened up new sources of bargaining
leverage for workers through the introduction of new production concepts such as Just In
Time (JIT) and Just In Sequence (JIS). Through an analysis of the supply chain of BMW
in South Africa and Germany the study demonstrates the contradictory nature of
contemporary restructuring in the global automotive industry. The method used in the
study involved in-depth interviews with key actors in the industry, a field research trip to
the BMW Regensburg assembly plant in Germany, extensive consultation of union
documentation and extensive participant observation in the process of restructuring in my
capacity as head of Organising, Campaigns and Collective Bargaining (OCCB) in the
National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA).