Jaguar Land Rover to cut 4,000 jobs over next two years
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is set to cut 4,000 jobs over the next two years as it grapples with US tariffs, cheap competition from China and the increasing transition to electric vehicles (EVs).
Tariff Trouble
In July 2025, JLR announced it would cut 500 UK management jobs, as it dealt with the fallout from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs in April of that year.
The President’s decision to hit all foreign car and light truck imports to the US with a 25% tariff had a huge impact on JLR, in a region which accounted for 400,000 of its annual sales. Although the tariff rate was later reduced to 10% after the US and UK agreed to a trade truce, shipments were paused for a significant period, leading to a 15% decline in sales to just over 94,000 from March 2025 until June 2025.
Cyber Attacks Halt Production
Further trouble hit JLR in August 2025 when it was the subject of a cyber attack, resulting in production being halted at the company. The British government issued a £1.5 billion loan to help protect jobs in the West Midlands, Merseyside and the wider UK area, where JLR employs about 30,000 people. Production was later restarted in October 2025 after a month-long halt where factories remained completely idle.
JLR employs 43,000 people globally, and the latest cuts will take place over the next two years, predominantly affecting the Coventry-based head office. The company hopes to achieve this mainly through voluntary redundancies, with an aim of saving £1.7 billion over the next couple of years.
Chinese Competition
Then there is the issue of the Chinese automotive wave into the UK. Companies like BYD, as well as new brands like Jaecoo, Omoda and Chery, have all offered serious competition in the British SUV sector. Lower starting prices and being at the forefront of electrification have given Chinese brands an advantage in the market. Instead of using China as an opportunity for growth, JLR has been losing sales to these companies at a rapid rate.
Last month, the UK government announced it would invest £130 million into the automotive industry in a bid to speed up its transition to building electric vehicles. JLR has been a little late to the party in that regard, and while Jaguar has bet the house on electrification with the Type 00, Range Rover only recently announced its first electric vehicle.
“We recognise this will be difficult news for colleagues affected”
JLR’s chief executive, PB Balaji, said in a statement on Monday: "The automotive industry faces significant challenges, with technological change amidst intense competition and ongoing geo-political uncertainty.
"Through our Growth Reimagined strategy, JLR is moving decisively to strengthen our competitiveness and position the business for long-term success.
"Over the next 12 months, we will launch five new products, continue to leverage the strength of our brands and renew our focus on North America, amongst other markets, to help us deliver double digit revenue growth.
"At the same time, we are reducing organisational complexity and targeting £1.7bn of savings to lower our break-even point towards 300,000 vehicles and become fitter to compete in a rapidly evolving market.
"These actions will support continued investment of £15bn-18bn over the next five years in electrification, digital technologies, advanced manufacturing and enhanced customer experiences.
"As part of this transformation, we will reduce our global workforce by around 4,000 roles over the next two years. We recognise this will be difficult news for colleagues affected, and are committed to supporting everyone with care, fairness and respect."
words: Mike Booth
pictures: JLR Media