As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to ravage the automotive industry, another carmaker is forced to suspend its operations to further secure the health and welfare of the employees of the company. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars announced that production at its manufacturing plant in Goodwood, UK, will be suspended for two weeks beginning March 23, Monday. “The day-to-day operations of the company will be assured by non-production employees who will remain at work at the company’s head office on the Goodwood Estate in West Sussex or who will work from home on a rotational basis,” the luxury car maker mentioned in its press release. The unprecedented action by Rolls-Royce is being taken in accordance with measures by the UK Government to combat the growing Covid-19 problem in the region. As of the moment, social distancing measures have been introduced throughout the company as it prepares for the impending shutdown, Rolls-Royce said. The upcoming work suspension will be followed by an already-planned two-week Easter maintenance work at the Goodwood plant. “This action has not been taken lightly, but the health and well-being of our exceptional workforce is first and foremost in our minds,” said Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.  “We are a tight-knit community at the Home of Rolls‑Royce and I have no doubt that our resilience will shine through during this extraordinary time.” “As a deeply customer-focused company we are aware that this decision to pause our production will possibly cause some discomfort or inconvenience to a few of our esteemed patrons, for which we apologise while seeking their understanding at this difficult time,” he continued. Locally, car companies have also halted their dealership operations in Luzon to comply with the Philippine Government’s enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). Some car brands have announced that Visayas and Mindanao dealership operations will continue throughout the quarantine, but there are those that announced shortened hours for their dealerships in those regions. The ECQ, which takes effect from 12:00 am of March 17, 2020 until 12:00 am of April 13, 2020, calls for the “strict” home quarantine in all households, suspension transportation, regulation food and essential health services, and heightening of uniformed personnel’s presence to enforce quarantine procedures.

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