The decision by Bridgestone Tyres to close their last remaining Australian plant in Adelaide is a stark demonstration that Australia is yet to feel the full impacts of the global financial crisis, said the AMWU today.

Six hundred workers will lose their jobs in April next year as a result of the decision.

AMWU State Secretary John Camillo said the decision was a blow for workers, the local community of North Adelaide and the industry as Bridgestone was the last remaining tyre manufacturer in the country.

“We are in a difficult environment,” said Mr Camillo.

“The dollar is up, the price of oil and commodities are rising and the recent increase in interest rates are all factors that put local manufacturers such as Bridgestone under pressure,”

 “We’re not in recovery mode yet, and we urge the Reserve Bank to consider the challenges Australian manufacturers are facing when deciding future interest rate rises.

“Bridgestone’s decision to close its South Australian and New Zealand plants will mean that tyres will now be imported from overseas, rather than employing local workers and stimulating the economy. 

“The focus now is to retrain, re-skill and re-employ those 600 workers, to ensure that they are not just left hanging.

“We have seen this work successfully in the past, with a program that assisted retrenched Mitsubishi workers, funded by the State and Federal Governments.

“We call on the State and Federal Government to intervene to assist workers to retrain and mitigate the impacts of such a large-scale layoff in the community of North Adelaide.

“If we want to be part of a country that makes things, with a robust economy and strong employment levels, we must be investing in and supporting local industry so that this sort of situation can be avoided,” said Mr Camillo.