The three-year Future Skills Programme will look to train new and existing workers in electrification – the process of replacing fossil fuel powered technologies with technologies that run on electricity – with a view to utilising them to make and service electric and autonomous (self-driving) cars in the future.
Jaguar Land Rover also plans to retrain thousands of automotive engineers and production employees in order to create more jobs for the future.
Barbara Bergmeier, Jaguar Land Rover industrial operations executive director, added: “Our plans to electrify our product portfolio are running at pace, and we are rapidly scaling up our future skills training programme to ensure we have the right talent to deliver the world’s most desirable modern luxury electric vehicles.
“Developing the skilled global workforces needed to design, build and maintain the vehicles of the future is foundational. I’m proud to say we are committing to help plug the electric and digital skills gap with a comprehensive, global training programme, which will power charge electrification both here in the UK and abroad.”
Currently 80% of Jaguar Land Rover retailers across the world provide servicing for electric vehicles. The manufacturer wants to get that number closer to 100%.
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Paul Beesley, director and senior consultant at Beyond Training, commended Jaguar Land Rover's commitment to upskilling to fill an urgent need in its workforce.
He told HR magazine: "Jaguar’s announcement that it is upskilling 29,000 of its people is exciting. Customer demand and changes in technology are driving the move towards electric vehicles and therefore the need for this training throughout Jaguar’s manufacturing plant and franchise network.
"I see Jaguar as an iconic brand that is moving with the times. After all, standing still means falling behind. I don’t view Jaguar as being the kind of industrial animal that stands still."
The scheme will reach over 10,000 Jaguar Land Rover and franchised retailer employees in the UK, while thousands of apprentices across the company will also be trained up.
The company recorded losses of £524 million for the second quarter of 2022. This was partly attributed to supply chain issues caused by a global shortage in semiconductors which have affected the automotive industry since 2021.
The shortage caused production to temporarily stop at several Jaguar Land Rover factories in 2021.
