Hundreds of jobs at BMW‘s MINI plant in Oxford, UK will end up getting cut due to falling demand. Out of a total of 4,000 workers, 400 of the 950 agency staff will be let go.
Production at the factory had to be suspended back in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, with work resuming two months later. Unfortunately for MINI, customer demand remained low and a decision was made to reduce the number of shifts.
Going forward, the plant will switch from a three-shift pattern to just two shifts in mid-October, while still following a five day work cycle, reports the BBC.
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Employees who will be affected by these changes will be informed by the middle of next month – all of them are said to work full time on the production line.
“Like other automotive manufacturers, our volume forecasts for 2020 have had to change accordingly,” said HR exec Bob Shankly. “We have, therefore, made the difficult decision to adjust our shift patterns at Mini Plant Oxford from October.”
“This will give us the flexibility we need to adapt our production in the short to medium term, according to developments in global markets. Our decision has been made after close discussion with trade union representatives and we are aware that our plans will have an impact on people during an uncertain and worrying time.”
“We have sought to protect as many jobs as we can, while also taking the necessary steps to ensure the stability of our business in light of this current period of volatile and unpredictable market conditions.”
The carmaker will also reduce its total number of core employees, however that will only add up to a “small” amount, with voluntary redundancies and early retirement options currently being considered.
The Oxford plant produced no fewer than 222,340 MINI models in 2019 and has been in operation since 1913.
