OSAKA -- Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. said Thursday it will transfer 1,000 surplus workers from its marketing division to a new information technology service section that will report directly to its president.
The transfer is part of a new three-year management plan that takes effect Monday and will be completed by the end of calendar 2001, Matsushita said.
The section, to be called Human and Technical Service Co., will offer IT-related education and administrative services for clients.
Matsushita Electric, known for the National and Panasonic brands, will also introduce a merit-based flexible work-time system for nonmanagerial workers in the planning, financial, legal and other administrative sections at its corporate headquarters.
Under the system, which will apply to about 100 employees aged 30 to 35, the biggest annual pay gap between the most and least competent workers will be around 1 million yen, Matsushita said.
Among other reforms, Matsushita will create a "global executive" system that will enable locally employed executives of overseas subsidiaries to participate in the parent company's top management meetings to work out business strategies.
During fiscal 2001, six senior officials of U.S., European and other major overseas units will be appointed global executives.