Vauxhall axes 900 jobs at UK plant

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Nearly a third of factory's jobs are lost
Latest setback for UK car industry
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Vauxhall has confirmed that around 900 jobs are to go at its Ellesmere Port plant in the UK.

In another setback for the UK car industry, Vauxhall owner GM has scrapped one of three shifts at the factory which mainly builds the Astra small family car.

The company says it has been forced to make the cuts because of 'ongoing pressure to increase productivity and reduce costs'.

GM president Carl-Peter Foster said: 'There is no viable alternative. The reduction of a shift at the Ellesmere Port plant will be the most cost-efficient approach to attaining necessary reductions in output.'

Foster said more job losses were not expected during the current Astra's lifespan, which will run until around 2010. It also doesn't indicate that the plant can't win jobs to build other new models.

Production at Ellesmere Port rocketed by 28.9% last year with almost 190,000 cars rolling off the line. The Astra was also the second biggest-selling car in the UK in 2005, behind the Ford Focus, but a downturn in demand is being predicted by GM.

An online poll of whatcar.com readers show 43% are proud to buy British-built cars. Whatcar.com readers also voted Vauxhall as the best of British manufacturers, again with 43% of the vote, although this poll was taken before likely job losses came to light.

We're re-running the poll this week, so visit the homepage now to cast your vote.

The losses at Ellesmere Port follow last month's announcement by Peugeot that its Ryton plant in the UK will close next summer with 2300 job losses. TVR has also confirmed that it is leaving Blackpool, while last year MG Rover collapsed and Jaguar shut down its Browns Lane factory.