Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV) has transferred Vietnamese engineer Le Van Tach, who exposed technical faults in manufacturing leading to the recall of Toyota cars in Vietnam earlier this year, to a lower-paying job.
Engineer Le Van Tach Photo: Giao Duc Viet Nam
Earlier on June 13, after Tach revealed Toyota’s technical faults to the mass media, the company suspended Tach for three months during which he would be paid 50 percent of his monthly salary.
The company at that time said the suspension was not connected with the whistle-blowing but was due to Tach’s behavior that negatively affected work and reputation of other employees.
At Wednesday’s meeting on a disciplinary action against Tach, TMV general director Akito Tachibana decided to shorten the suspension period and transfer Tach to another job with lower salary for six months effective August 25.
According to TMV, Tach’s violations of the company’s labor regulations have seriously affected the overall order and caused internal instability.
Engineer Le Van Tach points to the point where a technical fault exists
TMV reiterated that a disciplinary action against Tach was an internal affair of the company that was aimed at stabilizing the company’s labor relations and was not related to Tach’s disclosure of Toyota’s technical faults to the mass media.
In last April Tach released documents revealing three major glitches in Innova and Fortuner vehicles.
The cars made in Vietnam faced balance issues since their screws were not tightened properly as instructed by the Japanese company, Tach said.
The brakes and seats did not meet safety standards either, he added.
His exposure led to the biggest vehicle recall in Vietnamese history.
