Strike At DHL Could Cripple JLR

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

Ah, the wondrous web of global automaking: Drivers and sorters at DHL are going on strike, and this threatens to cripple production at Jaguar Land Rover in the UK. JLR has outsourced a good deal of its logistics to Deutsche Post–owned DHL. DHL employees serving JLR’s plants at Castle Bromwich and Solihull voted for a strike after they did not receive terms and conditions extended to regular JLR staff.

JLR and DHL ware working on contingency plans to keep production going. “A source close to JLR played down fears that production could stop altogether and that the carmaker was studying “a range of options” to ensure parts continued to reach the production line,” Reuters says.

DHL workers at JLR’s Halewood factory in North West England that makes the Land Rover Evoque, are due to vote today. Workers at other logistics firms serving JLR may join the strike.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Twotone Twotone on Jul 08, 2013

    +1 Just use the parts they have in stock. Maybe no one will notice.

  • CJinSD CJinSD on Jul 08, 2013

    Employees of a subcontractor can't strike against their firm's customer. They can only quit. I'd have them out of the building and barred from returning in 15 minutes.

    • See 1 previous
    • CJinSD CJinSD on Jul 08, 2013

      @Corey Lewis One must assume that DHL has the union disease too, or else they'd replace the dolts themselves. Doesn't this create a big problem for DHL, whose workforce will leverage whatever this subset of nitwits extorts from JLR to require the same benefits everywhere?

  • Ash78 Ash78 on Jul 08, 2013

    You know how to tell when DHL drivers are on strike? None of your packages arrive on time or in the right place. Same as usual.

  • Omnifan Omnifan on Jul 08, 2013

    Time to outsource the logistics to Lucas :)

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