Toyota expands temporary workforce

TOYOTA Australia is temporarily expanding its workforce to help it meet an unexpected jump in export orders.

The Altona-based car-maker confirmed today that it had already added 70 workers to its Altona North production line to help it meet extra orders mainly from its export markets, with another 70 soon to join the company.

The car-maker exports its Camry sedan to Middle Eastern countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Toyota public affairs manager Glenn Campbell said the unexpected jump in orders would help the car maker produce about 70,000 cars for export this year – the same number it produced last year.

The temporary jobs boom is a boon for Toyota, which early last year slashed 350 jobs in response to falling international demand and a rising Australian dollar that made its cars more expensive to build and sell.

The company also opened a new 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine plant last year that feeds into the locally made Camry and petrol-electric Camry Hybrid, with 16,000 destined for export to new markets including Thailand and Malaysia.

Toyota is believed to be close to making a decision about a third model that it will add to its Australian car-making operations, with the most likely candidate the RAV4 soft-roader.

A generational shift for the RAV4 saw it move to the same platform as both the locally built Camry four-cylinder sedan and closely related V6-engined Aurion V6, making it an easy fit for the Altona North line and potentially adding valuable volume to Toyota’s Australian production.