The union representing the workers, Unite, is demanding that the government provide a furlough scheme for employees hit by the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) cyber attack after some within the supply chain were said to have been made redundant or instructed to enroll for universal credit. The union is calling for thousands of JLR supply chain workers to have a similar furlough scheme announced this week to help staff at bus maker Alexander Dennis.
JLR was targeted by a cyberattack a few weeks ago and after an initial halt, has now announced that it will not be able to get back to production until at least 24th September, whereas suppliers have been cautioned that disruption may last until November.
Employees have been instructed not to come to work as production lines remain impacted.
News has stated that it is losing the business approximately £72m each day in sales, while an industry insider recently estimated that the shutdown may mean £1.7bn worth of vehicles haven’t been produced, which translates to £120m in lost profit.
Garages and businesses that have been counting on the company to keep producing vehicles have also been hit by the cyberattack.
It is estimated over 100,000 workers are employed throughout the supply chain as a whole, and some companies rely wholly on JLR car manufacture.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham added: “JLR supply chain workers should not be asked to pay the price for the cyberattack. It is up to the government to defend jobs and industries that are a crucial part of the economy. Ministers must follow the lead of the Scottish government’s package to support Alexander Dennis workers and introduce an equivalent scheme to cover workers in the JLR supply chain immediately.”
Unite says it has penned a letter to the government and insisted on a voice in the decision-making process to stand up for workers’ interests.
JLR refused to comment on Unite’s allegations. A previous statement from the company stated that they were working “around the clock” to sort things out.
“We have notified colleagues, suppliers and partners that we’ve lengthened the existing halt in our production through Wednesday 24 September 2025,” it stated.
“We have made this decision while our forensic examination of the cyber incident continues, and as we weigh the various phases of the controlled restart of our worldwide operations, which will be a time-consuming process. We are extremely sorry for the ongoing disruption this incident is having and we will keep updating as the investigation unfolds”, it added.
