Jaguar Land Rover confirms planned job cuts

Jaguar Land Rover has confirmed planned job cuts, opening a voluntary redundancy programme as the company tries to save about £1.7 billion over the next two years.

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evolving global market conditions

The programme offers salaried employees and management team members the chance to leave the business. JLR said it needed to simplify its organisation, improve efficiency and build greater resilience as global market conditions evolve. The Times reported that tariffs and falling sales could put as many as 4,000 jobs at risk, but the company told the BBC that it had not confirmed the number.

The announcement comes a year after a cyberattack brought JLR's production to a halt for several weeks. No vehicles left its production lines during the shutdown, which contributed to a 27% fall in overall production. The company estimated the combined cost of the attack and lost manufacturing at £1.9 billion.

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simplify

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the union had warned of a "perfect storm" in the automotive industry. She said there had been intensive discussions over the weekend to limit job losses and that she would meet Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and JLR chief executive PB Balaji the following week. Unite national officer Des Quinn described the period as an "incredibly worrying and stressful time" for workers.

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perfect storm

The UK government said it had reduced electricity bills for manufacturers and provided financial support for zero-emission vehicles. JLR employs about 30,000 people in the UK, with sites in Coventry, Solihull, Wolverhampton and Halewood. It said it had strengthened its brands and prepared for its next generation of vehicles, after indicating in July that fewer than 300 people would leave under earlier cost-saving plans.

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incredibly worrying and stressful time for JLR workers