Unions Blame Work Pressure for Renault Suicides

Unions at Renault are holding "Contract 2009" accountable for three suicides by workers at Renault's Technocenter in the past three months. The three deaths triggered an official investigation after one of the workers left a note blaming work pressures. WardsAuto describes CEO Carlos Ghosn's corporate growth plan, aka Contract 2009:

One key element of Contract 2009 is the perfection of the new Laguna due to launch later this year, and another is Renault's plan to average eight vehicles launches per year instead of the traditional four as it expands into new segments.

Patrick Pelata, Ghosn's right-hand man in charge of product, said in an interview last week Renault has 14 vehicles in development, which is "the phase that consumes the most resources in engineering."

A statement by Renault says the latest suicide raises questions, but that work conditions "are not the most difficult" and "the personnel feel strongly mobilized."

[Source: WardsAuto]