Workers at Toyota’s Altona North factory saw the last car?—?a petrol Camry?—?roll off the production line as the company closed its doors, forcing more than 2,500 workers to seek new employment.
The Altona North closure comes just weeks before Holden shuts its Adelaide factory, ending commercial car manufacturing in Australia.
The Opposition Leader said the Prime Minister and his Government were out of touch in “blaming the car and the product” and not looking at what they could have done to save 2500 Toyota workers from losing their jobs.
“This is a Government who can find hundreds of millions of dollars to hold postal surveys, to hold royal commissions, but when it comes to saving manufacturing, blue-collar engineering, high-skilled jobs in this country, the Turnbull government is all talk and no action. I think it is a very sad day for these workers” Mr Shorten said.
The Minister for Employment, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, said in a statement that “the Government is providing comprehensive support to affected workers through this transition so they can get back into the workforce as soon as possible” also noting the 2017–18 Budget included investment in manufacturing industries and cutting-edge research infrastructure, positioning both sectors for the future.
