‘I found out I lost my Vauxhall job on WhatsApp’

By Gbam Godwin On Mar 26, 2026

‘I found out I lost my Vauxhall job on WhatsApp’.

After over 120 years as a driving force in the community, Vauxhall Motors is ending its long-standing partnership with Luton. Stellantis stated on Tuesday that its van-making factory would collapse, putting 1,100 jobs at risk. Where will this leave the town’s economy and its residents?

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‘Knock-on effect’

Sam Read/BBC A worker in a Vauxhall Luton plant, working on a van, with tyres and car parts around him. There is a lot of machinery, hanging from the ceiling and more vans in a production line.

A forklift operator at the business, who has been with the company for ten years, said he was “pretty depressed” at the news.
He said receiving a WhatsApp message from a buddy informing him of his job loss was “pretty rubbish” because he was not at work at the time.

“There’s a lot of people there, a lot of people coming up to retirement and youngsters – it’s going to hit the town hard,” said the guy, who spoke to the BBC anonymously.

“There will be a significant impact on the community because many people rely on Vauxhall for parts. “It’ll be huge.”

‘Deeply troubling’

PA Media Rachel Hopkins wearing a black jacket over a red dress, asking a question in the House of Commons, she has dark long hair, glasses and has a necklace on. The seats are green leather, she is talking into a microphone and is holding a sheet of paper. — Rachel Hopkins MP said she would do all she could to protect jobs in Luton

Rachel Hopkins, the Labour MP for Luton South and South Bedfordshire, said the news was “deeply troubling” and a “real blow” for the town.

She said she was committed to working with government, Stellantis and Unite the Union to secure the “best solution” for the town and its “highly skilled” workforce.

“Luton depends on these high-quality manufacturing jobs to drive local growth and support national prosperity,” she explained.

“The Vauxhall plant is part of the fabric of Luton’s heritage and vital to our local economy.

“For over a century, generations of Lutonians have worked there, contributing to the production of vehicles like the Vivaro van.

“These efforts have created jobs and attracted investment.”

He described how many firms supplied parts to Vauxhall, saying, “We have over 500 lorries coming to Vauxhall every day, from all over the place.”

He stated that because he was in his late fifties, he expected it to be more difficult for him to find another employment, but he had his “fingers crossed”.
“Luckily I’ve done other training so I can look for jobs elsewhere.”

‘Not a surprise’

Reuters A sign outside Vauxhall's Luton plant in Luton, on 4 April, 2018, showing a red Vivaro van, on a big grey building with a fence to the right.

Prof David Bailey, a car industry academic at the University of Birmingham, described how factory personnel worked “really flexibly for decades” and pulled out “all the stops” to keep prices low.

has long warned about the difficulties of manufacturing parts and cars in the United Kingdom.

The company had previously pushed the government to do more to boost consumer demand for electric vehicles.