Jaguar factory shut for a week

Sep 26 2008 by Alistair Houghton, Liverpool Daily Post

JAGUAR Land Rover (JLR) has confirmed it will stop production for a week next month at its Halewood plant as it bids to cope with falling sales.

Premium car brands such as Jaguar and Land Rover have been hard-hit by the credit crunch, and sales in the UK and US have fallen.

Tata Motors-owned JLR is hoping to boost sales in emerging markets such as Russia and China but, as reported in the Daily Post yesterday, the company is concerned that those overseas sales may not compensate for declining sales in its core UK and US markets.

A JLR spokeswoman said the company was continually monitoring its production schedules. It has already held several non-production days at Halewood, where it employs some 2,000 people.

She said: “It’s important for us to stay flexible, particularly at the moment when the market is so volatile. That week is in response to the market.”

All workers will receive basic pay during the non-production week, which starts on October 27, while some workers will be asked to come to work to carry out maintenance and other tasks.