Jaguar Land Rover is preparing to cut thousands of jobs as Britain’s biggest carmaker battles falling sales, the financial impact of a major cyber attack and continuing pressure from US tariffs.
The company has told employees and unions that it will open a voluntary redundancy programme for salaried and management staff. Up to 4,000 jobs could be lost over the next two years, although JLR has not confirmed the final figure.
The cuts come as the company seeks to reduce costs by around £1.7bn over the next two years. JLR, which is owned by India’s Tata Motors, has also been affected by weaker demand in China and slower than expected growth in electric vehicle sales.
US tariffs on imported vehicles have added to the pressure. Washington initially imposed a 25 percent tariff before Britain secured a deal reducing the rate to 10 percent for UK vehicles.
JLR’s financial performance has deteriorated sharply. Profit before tax fell to just £14m, compared with £2.5bn a year earlier. Production also dropped by 27 percent following a cyber attack that disrupted operations and cost the company around £200m.
The company employs about 44,000 people worldwide, with roughly 30,000 based in the UK, many working across manufacturing plants in the West Midlands.
The planned redundancies are expected to concern unions and politicians, who have warned about the potential impact on manufacturing jobs and local economies.
JLR has nevertheless continued investing in its luxury electric vehicle strategy, recently unveiling its first fully electric Range Rover, priced from £154,070.
