UK car industry warns one in six jobs could be lost after COVID-19 crisis
A third of the automotive industry workforce in the UK is still on furlough after coronavirus lockdowns and a collapse in demand brought the sector to a near-total halt in the past couple of months.
According to a new survey by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), there were more than 6,000 redundancies in the car industry in the month of June — and one in six jobs will remain at risk when the government’s furlough scheme ends in November.
SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes today called on the government for a specific ‘restart package” to safeguard against jobs losses, and help boost recovery for the important industry.
“The prolonged shutdown has squeezed liquidity and the pressures are becoming more acute as expenditure resumes before invoices are paid,” said Hawes in