Unions back Tatas146; Jaguar-Land Rover bid

The Tata Group seems to have further strengthened its position in the race to acquire US carmaker Ford8217;s British brands Jaguar and Land Rover...

The Tata Group seems to have further strengthened its position in the race to acquire US carmaker Ford8217;s British brands Jaguar and Land Rover, with the workers union backing its bid. The support came after three shortlisted bidders 8212; Tatas, another Indian firm Mahindra and Mahindra and private equity firm OneEquity 8212; made presentations to representatives of the union in London on Tuesday, media reports said today.

8220;Local officials from the factories serving the two luxury brands opted to back Tata because they felt that a manufacturer would offer more long-term security than OneEquity, other leading bidder,8221; UK daily The Times reported. OneEquity is led by former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser, during whose tenure the US carmaker had purchased Land Rover seven years ago.

The union representatives also voiced their concern over Tatas8217; bid mainly due to fears of possible outsourcing of manufacturing activities. Another British daily Financial Times quoted a person familiar with Tatas8217; presentation saying that 8220;the carmaker committed to the two brands as a long-term investment and endorsed the two brands8217; management.8221; Even though the union backing is not essential, the support is seen as important for the politically sensitive deal, the report said.

US financial daily Wall Street Journal said in a separate report that during a meeting at 8220;Land Rover8217;s factory in Solihull, England, about 60 senior shop stewards representing workers at both brands voted in favour of a resolution supporting the Tatas8217; bid.8221; The union support could give a political boost to Tatas8217; bid, the report stated.

Land Rover and Jaguar are estimated to directly employ 16,000 people. The figure touches around 40,000 when employment generated throughout the supply and support chain are included.

In a statement, British trade union Unite8217;s joint general secretary Tony Woodley said that the union8217;s shop stewards at Jaguar and Land Rover had made it clear that they would prefer to stay as part of Ford but 8220;if the sale was decided, they felt the best interests of the workforce would be served by finding a partner with an established presence and background in manufacturing8221;. Based on serving the best interests of the union members at Jaguar and Land Rover, the stewards agreed that Tata best fit these criteria, the statement added.

Ford is looking to finalise the bidder for its two luxury brands by December and the US carmaker is expected to get about 1 billion pounds from the sale.