MORE than 3000 workers have walked off the job at Toyota plants in Melbourne and Sydney, crippling output.

The workers say they are in a stand-off with Toyota over the timing of pay upgrades.

In addition to the 24-hour work stoppage that began at 7am yesterday, a further three weeks of Thursday/Friday stoppages are planned.

The acting national secretary of the vehicle division of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, Dave Smith, says the two parties are not too far apart in a complex negotiation.

He said the employees had not had a pay rise since early 2010, but Toyota could offer only an immediate 1 per cent rise.