Australia has mass-produced cars for decades, but that will all end this month.
Holden will close its Adelaide plant in less than three weeks, on October 20, placing 944 people out of work.
But the biggest workforce hit will occur tomorrow — when Toyota shuts down its manufacturing facilities in Altona, which will make 2,500 workers redundant.
Since shutting down its Australian operations last year, Ford and the Government have spent millions on retraining workers. But only about half them have been able to find new jobs.
Former employees from those car factories face insecure employment, the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) said.
“A great majority of them are finding casual work that may lead to full time work but obviously at extremely lower pay and conditions,” said Paul Difelice of the AMWU’s vehicle division.
This is consistent with what has happened to former workers in the car industry when a manufacturer closes down.
Back in 2004, Mitsubishi closed its Lonsdale engine plant. But two years after closure, most former Mitsubishi workers were doing it tough, according to Professor Andrew Beer from Flinders University.
His studies showed only one-third of those workers were able to find full-time equivalent work.
In addition, one-third were unemployed or underemployed, and the remainder were not working at all.
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Article and Image sourced: ABC
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