AMWU reacts to Toyota closure

I mentioned the other day that there was going to be deep anger in Australia over the demise of the Australian car industry, and by the tone of the AMWU they're ready to just about string Abbott up over it. This is just the beginning. It's going to take time for it all to sink in for the community, especially those communities directly affected by the loss of jobs. 

When they say 50,000 jobs, that's not 50,000 jobs lost spread evenly across Australia. That's 50,000 jobs concentrated in Victoria and South Australia lost. No matter how you look at it or try to spin it politically, that is a huge hit to the economy in anybodies language. This is now a huge problem for the gov itself, let alone workers facing unemployment. How does Abbott expect tax revenue from 50,000 people struggling to find work? How is Abbott going to pay for thousands more unemployment payments instead of getting tax revenue? 

Abbott has not only fucked the workers in our late car industry, he's actually managed to fuck himself as well. I suppose you do have to look at the silver lining in things. 

From the AMWU:

The wilful negligence of the Abbott Government is the major reason behind the catastrophic decision of Toyota to end car making in Australia. 

“Tony Abbott will go down in history as the PM who cost Australia its car industry and changed this nation for the worse,” AMWU National Secretary Paul Bastian said. 

“The tragedy is that it didn’t have to be this way, we should never have had 50,000 jobs in peril. 

“The high dollar, the fragmented market and high local costs could have been overcome if Tony Abbott had sat down with car companies and planned co-investment - instead of pulling $500 million support from the Automotive Transformation Scheme and antagonising everyone.” 

Bastian said the shameful reaction of blindsided Government was to try to avoid responsibility by again blaming workers’ conditions for the closure. 

But the Coalition was exposed as lying - just as it had been with Holden and SPC Ardmona. 

“What we are seeing is a Government that refuses to take responsibility and continues to try to blame workers and unions for industry failures that it has caused,” said the National Secretary. 

Treasurer Joe Hockey vouched for the accuracy of media reports that Toyota’s Australian President told him on December 3 that workers’ conditions were the key impediment to it staying in Australia. 

But Toyota publicly denied that this was the case. 

“Toyota’s management have slapped down this government’s blame game, totally denying it ever blamed the union for its closure either publicly or privately,” Mr Bastain said. 

“We don’t need Joe Hockey’s games, we desperately need leadership - a fresh manufacturing plan to help us look after thousands of members whose jobs will go as the devastating impact flows through the components industry.” more