‘I found out I lost my Vauxhall job on WhatsApp’

After nearly 120 years as a driving force in the town, Vauxhall Motors is putting the brakes on its hardwired association with Luton. The parent company Stellantis announced on Tuesday that its van-making factory would close and 1,100 jobs were at risk. Where will this leave the town’s economy and local people?

A forklift worker at the plant, who has been with the company for 10 years, said he was “pretty depressed” by the news.

He said finding out he was losing his job via a WhatsApp message from a friend – having not been at work when the announcement was made – was “pretty rubbish”.

“There’s a lot of people there, a lot of people coming up to retirement and youngsters – it’s going to hit the town hard,” said the man, who spoke to the BBC anonymously.

“As there’s a lot of people that depend on Vauxhall to supply parts, there’s going to be a big knock-on effect.

“It’s going to hit the town hard. It will be huge.”

He described how a lot of companies supplied parts to Vauxhall, adding: “We have over 500 lorries a day coming to Vauxhall, from all over the place.”

He said, being in his late 50s, he believed it would be harder for him to get another job, but he had his “fingers crossed”.

“Luckily I’ve done other training so I can look for jobs elsewhere.”

Rachel Hopkins, the Labour MP for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, said the news was “deeply troubling” and a “real blow” for the town.

She said she was committed to working with government, Stellantis and Unite the Union to secure the “best solution” for the town and its “highly skilled” workforce.

“Luton depends on these high-quality manufacturing jobs to drive local growth and support national prosperity,” she explained.

“The Vauxhall plant is part of the fabric of Luton’s heritage and vital to our local economy.

“For over a century, generations of Lutonians have worked there, contributing to the production of vehicles like the Vivaro van.

“These efforts have created jobs and attracted investment.”

Prof David Bailey, a car industry academic from the University of Birmingham, described how staff had worked “really flexibly for decades” at the factory and pulled out “all the stops” to keep costs down.

“It’s not a surprise. Stellantis has been warning for some time how difficult it is to make parts and cars in the UK.”

The company had already called on government to do more to boost consumer demand in electric vehicles.

“It’s terrible for [the Luton workers], we don’t know how many jobs will be shifted to Ellesmere Port (in Cheshire).”

He also echoed concerns by Stellantis from July last year – that higher tariffs on exports to Europe, following Brexit could put jobs in jeopardy.

A spokesman for the government said: “We have a longstanding partnership with Stellantis and we will continue to work closely with them, as well as trade unions and local partners, on the next steps of their proposals.

“The government is also backing the wider industry with over £300m to drive uptake of zero-emission vehicles.”

Hazel Simmons MBE, the Labour leader of Luton Borough Council, said: “It’s a devastating blow for our town, it’s deeply destressing news.

“We are ready to support in any way we can and will be meeting with the plant’s management and trade unions to discuss practical help we can give at this time.”

She said the local authority would ask the government what support would be provided for the staff.

“Vauxhall has been an integral part of Luton’s heritage, and this is a sad day for our town, but we are a strong and resilient town, and always bounce back.”

Unite the Union, which represents workers at the site, said the proposal “has been a complete slap in face for our members in Luton”.

“We stand ready to support our members in doing whatever we can to ensure that historical vehicle manufacturing is maintained in Luton and we call on the government to do the same.”

• 1903: Vauxhall begins making cars in south London but moves to a new factory on Kimpton Road in Luton in 1905

• 1914 – 1918: During World War One, the company supplies cars for the war effort

• 1925: General Motors takes over Vauxhall, although the company retains its model range

• 1931: Vauxhall’s Bedford range of trucks and buses begins being produced in Luton

• 1940: As the company becomes a major supplier of lorries during the World War Two, 39 workers are killed in a German bombing raid

• 1950s: Truck production shifts to Boscombe Road in Dunstable. However, Luton retains van production until the demise of the Bedford brand at the end of the 1980s

• 1989: The £50m modernisation of the Luton plant begins

• 2002: Vauxhall closes its car plant in Luton, with about 1,900 job loses

• 2017: France’s PSA Group buys the European division of General Motors, which includes Vauxhall

• 2021: The group merges with Fiat Chrysler, creating a new company called Stellantis

• November 2024: Stellantis announces its Vauxhall van-making factory in Luton will close putting about 1,100 jobs at risk

Additional reporting by Andy Trigg, BBC News.