🔗 Share this article JLR Supply Chain Staff Reportedly Told to Register for Government Benefits, Union States Workers throughout the Jaguar Land Rover vendor network are reportedly being advised to apply for universal credit in the wake of the recent cyber attack, a prominent union has claimed. Unite indicated that workers are facing layoffs with “reduced or zero pay” following the security incident, which has forced the automaker to close its computer systems and halt production activities. Calls for Government Support The labor group has called on the British authorities to establish a wage support program, similar to the one introduced by the Scottish government for bus maker Alexander Dennis. The company did not respond on the union’s allegations. It had earlier mentioned that manufacturing operations would not resume until the end of September at the soonest, though insiders indicate that disruption could persist into late autumn. “Workers in the automaker’s vendor network should not be forced to bear the price for the cyber attack,” she added. Broad Economic Effect The company’s supply chain sustains over one hundred thousand jobs in the UK and sits at the apex of a hierarchy of vendors, many of whom are extremely dependent on the carmaker as their primary client. The security breach, which took place more than two weeks ago, has forced the producer to shut down its computer systems and stop production lines worldwide. The situation is believed to have cost JLR no less than £50m per week. A criminal investigation is under way. Concerns are increasing that many of JLR’s partners, small and medium-sized firms, do not possess the financial means to handle an prolonged interruption to business and resulting losses. Production Halts and Government Response The automaker’s three plants in Britain typically produce around 1,000 cars a day. It has told many of its 33,000 employees to stay at home. A parliament member, the head of the Commons business and trade committee, commented that the incident could lead to numerous of vendor staff being laid off. Byrne mentioned he had sent a letter to the chancellor to ask for Covid-style emergency help for suppliers. “This isn’t a mere glitch on the screen at JLR, this is a cyber blockade and it's created a cyber shockwave through their supply chain,” he remarked. JLR has indicated it postponed restarting production as a “detailed probe” of the cyber attack continued and it considered a “phased reopening” of global operations.