SA: Widespread stand downs looming for car industry

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SA: Widespread stand downs looming for car industry

By Tim Dornin, National Motoring Correspondent

ADELAIDE, April 29 AAP - Australia's car manufacturing industry is heading for totalshutdown as an industrial dispute at a component company threatens to engulf the entireautomotive sector affecting 14,000 workers.

Talks last night and today failed to end the 10-day strike at exhaust producer WalkerAustralia, with about 400 workers voting to stay out for another 48 hours.

The decision extended the shutdown of Holden and Ford's assembly lines and also impactedon the company's engine plants for the first time.

It also meant Mitsubishi and Toyota were unlikely to keep working beyond tomorrow asstocks of exhaust components dried up.

The dispute looked headed for the Federal Court tomorrow with Walker Australia's parentcompany, Tenneco Automotive, considering action against the Australian Manufacturers Workers'Union (AMWU), seeking costs and penalties.

At Holden the industrial standoff forced it to bring forward another rostered day offfor assembly line staff in Adelaide today.

However spokesman Jason Laird said most of the 4,400 workers at the Elizabeth plantwould go without pay from tomorrow.

Mr Laird said about 200 workers at the company's V6 engine plant at Port Melbournewould also go on rostered leave, with pay, from tomorrow.

At Ford the Broadmeadows assembly operation was idle today with the Geelong engineplant also closed for the first time.

Workers were receiving half pay with the option of topping that up through their normalleave entitlements.

General manager of communications Louise Teesdale said the timing of the dispute wasnot good, considering the company was gearing up for the introduction of the new Falconlater this year.

Mitsubishi chief executive Tom Phillips was also concerned at the timing, the disputeescalating just after the company's Japanese parent group confirmed a near $1 billioninvestment in the local operations.

"As far as we're concerned the timing could not be worse," Mr Phillips said.

The Mitsubishi boss said his company would be as flexible as it could in relation tobringing forward rostered days off for workers.

But unless a resolution was found soon, it was likely workers would lose money.

If all four car makers stopped production later this week about 14,000 workers would be idle.

But with all the car makers out of action many more in the component sector faced asimilar scenario as orders for a wide range of parts dried up, the dispute then impactingon the entire automotive sector.

Following the breakdown in the latest talks this morning, AMWU assistant national secretaryDave Oliver said the dispute could be resolved quickly if Tenneco management would agreeto a proposal put forward by an independent mediator last night.

That proposal was for the company to set up a trust fund to protect workers' entitlementsand then have an independent arbiter examine the need for such a scheme at a later date.

The AMWU believes an enterprise agreement signed last year locked the company intoestablishing such a scheme.

Management argues that a federal government scheme is sufficient.

However Tenneco managing director Alex Drysdale said the company was willing to setup a scheme now, provided the union would agree to immediate arbitration on its necessity.

Mr Oliver also expressed disappointment that Tenneco might take the issue to the court tomorrow.

"Not too many disputes are resolved by litigation," he said.

He said both he and AMWU national secretary Doug Cameron were ready to resume negotiationsat short notice.

Today ACTU president Sharan Burrow also urged Tenneco management to agree to the proposalput forward by the mediator last night.

"Tenneco should take responsibility for guaranteeing employee entitlements in accordancewith its enterprise agreement," Ms Burrow said.

"It is inadequate for companies to try to rely on the federal government's employeeentitlement scheme which does not guarantee 100 per cent of employee entitlements."

South Australian Industrial Relations Minister Michael Wright blamed the federal government'sindustrial relations system for the current industrial strife.

Mr Wright said there was little the state government could do except plead with bothsides to come to a speedy resolution.

"The state government has already played a key role in bringing the parties back tothe table for discussions and we again call on the parties to resolve this dispute," hesaid.

"But the federal government has effectively locked us out of the system."

AAP tjd/cjh/bwl

KEYWORD: MOTOR WALKER NIGHTLEAD