Nissan to axe 20,000 jobs, bringing Sunderland’s future into question

Nissan has announced it is to cut a total of 20,000 jobs globally, as part of a significant expansion of its “Re:Nissan” global economic recovery plan. In addition, the Japanese manufacturer will implement the closure of seven plants and suspend all product developments scheduled beyond 2026.

This move follows the company's prior communication in February, which outlined a reduction of 9,000 jobs, the closure of three manufacturing facilities, and a 20 per cent decrease in production volume to five million vehicles annually.

The statement coincides with the confirmation of a net loss of £3.8 billion for the fiscal year 2024/25, while the company clarified that the newly announced figure of 20,000 job reductions includes the 9,000 cuts previously disclosed. 

Ivan Espinosa, President and CEO of Nissan, attributed the considerable financial deficit to "a challenging FY24 performance and rising variable costs, compounded by an uncertain environment". He stated that the company: “must prioritize self-improvement with greater urgency and speed…taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery." 

Nissan anticipates achieving cost reductions of £1.3 billion by 2027. While a portion of this target will be met through supply chain optimisation and "cost efficiencies”, it appears the primary driver will be workforce reductions – although the company did affirm its intention to strengthen its collaborative relationships with the Renault Group, Mitsubishi and Honda as an additional route to streamline operations and achieve further cost reductions.

Worryingly for UK employees, the future of the Sunderland plant – which builds the Qashqai and Juke models – remains uncertain, with the job cuts said to affect personnel across manufacturing, administrative, and R&D roles. Nissan currently employs around 134,000 people worldwide, with approximately 6,000 people attached to the UK site.

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