Timkin Company's response to global competition and labor disputes

¶ … Timkin Company is the largest producer of bearings, and is regarded as the established steel manufacturing company of North America. The company did not only entertain and offer its services to the local clients within North America, but is also the largest exporter of steel alloys and bearings to other parts of the World. The political turmoil in other parts of the world provided the manufacturing firm with an ample opportunity to host different clients, and series of such opportunities provided with the company with immense financial growth. The manufacturing firm was popular for the implementation of balanced labor-production affiliation, and was successful in ensuring that any disequilibrium with reference to the labor relations are curtailed without affecting the credibility and production of the company. Once the technological revolution captivated the European and Asian region, the manufacturing firm observed the emergence of different bearing and steel-alloys manufacturing companies across the globe, in particular South East Asia. Such competitive scenario restricted the domain of activities within the corporate, and the management adopted different tactics to handle and dilute the influence of local and foreign agents. The threats associated with the internal agents was mainly attributed with the unions, which was diminished through different tactical means, the measures adopted kept the interest of the company well protected, the management on its behalf has been reluctant through to keep the stakes of the company at risk, and therefore has nullified the influence of the internal agents to overcome and concentrate on the expected dominance of the foreign companies in the market share. It was observed that the Japanese and Koreans have been successful in the deliverance of the bearing products and steel alloys in qualitative and quantitative terms, and the manufacturing units in both the countries have utilized the services of the cheap labor and economic concessions provided by the governments of the respective regions to secure financial gain and market share. Unfortunately, for Timkin Company it was difficult to rely on the economic provisions of the government of United States, therefore the company has to initiate preventive measures independently.

Issues

The labor unions has created major hurdle towards the development and expansion plan of the Timkin Company. The labor unions were proactive, and tried to curtail the production activities of the company, in case of the failure of the Timkin Company to fulfill the demands of the labor unions, which were mainly related to the labor wages. The strong foreign competition which threatened the development of the company, made it difficult for the management to allocate more funds towards the labors. The penetration of the Japanese and Koreans into the market influenced the market shares of the Timkin Company. The Timkin management observed that their Japanese and Korean counterparts offered fifty percent of labor wages offered by the Timkin Company, and therefore under such conditions when the market share was on the verge of declination, it was difficult for the Timkin management to offer any commitment or pledge towards rise in labor wages in the due course of time. The Timkin management also complained about the economic policies of the United States government, the government introduced certain measures which were responsible for the strengthening of the dollar currency, and such measures developed adverse impact on the exports and performance of the Timkin Company. The labor laws of the United States offered unprecedented protection to the rights of the labor forces, and the violation of the regulation was widely condemned, whereas the counterparts in Southeast Asia were not subjected to such restrictions, and it was reported that the companies in these region were mainly able to extract more out of their labor due to the ignorance on the part of the labor unions with reference to their rights. The production and functioning of the Timkin Company was also vulnerable to the strike calls, and the company on its part was unable to address the economic woes of their labor due to the rising competition in the international market. The company was oversized in terms of number of employees, and it required restructuring of the organization, the concerns of the appointees at mid-managerial level was another area of focus and concern for the management.

Consequences of implementation of these actions

The consequence of the different measures was appreciable, the production activities continued without any threats or break. The labors were more flexible, and equally zealous about their contribution and services towards the Timkin Company, and it was fully realized by the labors forces that they'll be the ultimate beneficiary of the company; the labor forces also realized their responsibilities towards the company in times of difficulties and rising competition. The company on its part was successful in making the labor realize about their significance and vitality for the company. The restructuring reforms implemented at mid-managerial level introduced by the company did not disturbed the labor forces, rather it was conveyed to them that such measures were purely taken in the interest of the company, to avoid any unwanted expenses, which was appreciated by the labor forces. The interaction between the labor forces and the management established strong affiliation between both the parties, and the labor was realized the demerits of the economic policies which were the cause of obstruction towards the success and growth of the company.