Motor manufacturer Nissan has warned it will not be able to sustain operations at its North East manufacturing plant if Brexit negotiations fail to establish a trade deal.
The 6,000 workers of the Sunderland plant breathed a sigh of relief last Thursday when Nissan CEO and president Makoto Uchida announced plans to maintain the site, and also improve efficiency.
Last week’s announcement came as the firm unveiled huge annual losses and plans to close its Barcelona plant, which will result in around 2,800 job losses.
However, a week after saying Sunderland remains an important part of the firm’s plans for the European business, Nissan’s global chief operating officer Ashwani Gupta has warned the company would not be able to stand by its commitment to the Sunderland plant if the Ƶ left the European Union without a trade deal that enabled tariff-free EU access.
Mr Gupta’s comments, made in a BBC Interview, echo the statements issued by the Nissan’s European chairman Gianluca de Ficchy during a visit to the plant last October, when he said that export tariffs would put the car giant’s European business model in jeopardy.
Mr Gupta said: “You know we are the number one carmaker in the Ƶ and we want to continue. We are committed.
“Having said that, if we are not getting the current tariffs, it’s not our intention but the business will not be sustainable.
“That’s what everybody has to understand.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been adamant he will not seek any extension to the current Brexit transition period which ends on December 31, despite warnings the coronavirus outbreak means it will be impossible to conclude a new free trade agreement with the EU by that date.
Meanwhile, a union has slammed Nissan’s ‘opportunistic’ plans to scrap a benefits pension scheme for hundreds of workers at its Sunderland plant.
Unite says members have been left angry by the announcement which it says will have a ‘damaging impact’ on members’ plans and financial security in retirement.
Unite warned Nissan last week that a planned efficiency drive must not impact on members’ jobs and terms and conditions.
But the car manufacturer says the level of company investment needed to maintain the pension plan has grown to ‘unsustainable levels’.
Unite national officer for automotive Steve Bush said: “Nissan’s plan to close the defined benefits pension scheme for hundreds of loyal workers is extremely disappointing.
“Unite warned last week that proposed efficiency savings at the Sunderland plant must not be used as an excuse to attack staff terms and conditions.
“Due to the timing we see this as an opportunistic attempt to push through long sought-after changes that will have a damaging impact on our members’ plans and financial security in retirement.
“Unite will not stand by and let this happen, especially when Nissan has signalled that an industry standard lump sum provided in return for accepting the closure of defined benefit schemes is also off the table.
A Nissan spokesman said the firm is in discussions with the affected employees and their representatives about the proposed closure of the plan.
He added: “We aim to provide competitive benefits to our highly valued staff, but these have to be balanced with the long term sustainability of our business. The level of company investment needed to maintain the defined benefit pension plan has grown to unsustainable levels.
“This planned consultation is not a short-term action. It is based on the formal valuation of the scheme carried out in April 2018, and is the next step in a long term process.”
