My adjournment matter this evening is directed to the Premier. It deals with a very serious matter, and that is a matter I raised earlier today in relation to Toyota. Without repeating my members statement, I refer the Premier to the contents of my members statement so that he is acquainted with the background and the industrial and political context of what is happening at the Toyota Altona plant.
Further to the points I have previously made, the chamber is informed that the redundancies have been deliberately targeted and directed at workers who are on light duties — that is right — after being injured at work while working for Toyota. All those workers are gone; they have all been sacked. In addition, over 50 per cent of all shop stewards and occupational health and safety representatives have been sacked.
All three groups have not only been targeted but will obviously have more difficulty than most in gaining future employment. Furthermore, all workers sacked at Toyota this week will have to fight the false assumption that they are not up to par as workers.
Toyota workers I have spoken to over the last two days have had 19, 26, 23, 22, 24 and 25 years of service. They have never received warnings. They have extraordinary banks of sick leave. They have been promoted and have sought and completed training and courses. They are good, solid workers now labelled as unskilled and unreliable. Oh, what a feeling! I think not.
I call on the Premier tonight to make a public statement on the events at Toyota this week indicating that Toyota’s actions have gone far beyond the realm of acceptable management practice and that a cooperative approach to such matters is critical.
To not do so only gives the green light to other employers to act in the same inhumane manner.