How much does labor strife affect quality? Every situation is different. But a new examination of data on defective Firestone tires suggests that the impact can be significant.
A study released in January by Princeton University economists Alan Krueger and Alexandre Mas looks at multiple sources of public data on failed Firestone tires. The tires have been linked to 271 fatalities, many occurring when Ford Explorer sport utility vehicles rolled over following tire-tread separation.
Firestone recalled 6.5 million 15-inch AT, ATX and ATX II tires in August 2000. The company has acknowledged that a disproportionate number of problem tires came from Decatur, one of three plants that made most of the recalled tires. Firestone cites "certain manufacturing factors" at Decatur among several contributing causes for the tread separations, but maintains that labor strife was not a factor.