JCB has announced plans to recruit more than 400 additional UK shop floor employees to help meet a ‘surge’ in production.
The manufacturer said the market for construction equipment has ‘rebounded sharply’ after the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which halted production at JCB factories around the world last year.
The company is recruiting more than 400 additional agency employees to fill a variety of roles including assembly, welding and fork lift truck drivers. JCB is also giving permanent contracts to up to 300 existing agency employees, including welders, fabricators and CNC machinists.
JCB chief operating officer Mark Turner said, “In March 2020 our orders dramatically disappeared overnight when the Covid-19 pandemic took hold and while we were able to protect our shop floor workforce, regrettably many staff positions were impacted. It took more than six months for the business to recover to production levels we last saw in March 2020.
“This year has started strongly and our forecasts predict a continued solid recovery, with strong demand from mainland Europe and North America. This means we are now in a position to recruit many more shop floor colleagues and offer permanent JCB contracts to a large number of existing agency employees. After a tumultuous 12 months, this really is good news.”
