THE closure of Toyota's Caringbah premises is a "devastating blow" to workers and their families, Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union NSW secretary Tim Ayres said.
"The union is working closely with our members and management to mitigate the number of job losses from the facility," he said. "We remain hopeful that we will be able to minimise impacts of the closure and we will work hard to ensure that this is the case."
Mr Ayres said the closure of the premises brings home the effects of Tony Abbott's decision to abandon the automotive industry.
"Tony Abbott and Mike Baird need to outline what their plan is for jobs in the region," he said.
Toyota Caringbah's 300-plus sales and marketing staff will be offered redeployment or redundancies after the announcement last week by Toyota Australia that it will consolidate its corporate operations in Melbourne.
Toyota Australia will slash its workforce from 3900 to about 1300, including the loss of manufacturing and corporate roles.
Toyota Australia president Dave Buttner said the relocation would align with the end of manufacturing in 2018.
"We will encourage our Sydney-based employees to move to Melbourne," he said.
What does Toyota's decision mean for the shire, or for you?