Takata Corp., the embattled auto parts supplier at the center of a spiraling controversy around dangerously malfunctioning airbags, announced today that its recently-installed president will step aside, with top executives taking a temporary pay cut.
Stefan Stocker, Takata Corp. president, will hand over his post to company chairman Shigehisa Takada. Stocker will remain on the board of the company, and the company claims the shuffling is not a demotion for Stocker.
The Swiss-born former president joined the company a mere 18 months ago, when problems with the auto supplier's airbags were mounting. Some Takata airbags have deployed with too much force during collisions, spewing metallic shrapnel at a vehicle's occupants. Regulators have connected defective Takata airbags to at least 139 injuries and five deaths.
The company says three top-level directors will take a 20 percent pay cut; Stocker will see a 30 percent pay reduction, and Takada, who along with his mother holds a majority stake in the company, will take a 50 percent pay cut for the next four months. Bloomberg reports Shigehisa Takada earned $2.3 million last year.
- Massive Takata Airbag Recall: Everything You Need to Know
- NHTSA Demands Nationwide Recall on Takata Airbags
- Takata Discovered Fatally Malfunctioning Airbags in 2004, Destroyed Data
Neither Takada nor Stocker attended the U.S. congressional hearings investigating the potentially fatal airbags. Those hearings, along with NHTSA action, prompted several automakers to expand small, regional airbag recalls to include all affected vehicles nationwide. For continuously-updated coverage of the Takata airbag recalls, and to see if your vehicle is affected, check our information portal.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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