A former automotive manufacturing worker has spoken about the anger and uncertainty facing current Holden employees as speculation runs rife over the future of the company in Australia.

Mike Etherington, who took the last round of Holden redundancies in July, says friends in the industry are in a state of panic over whether or not their jobs are safe.

"I've got mates who still work at Holden and they're all panicking," he said.

"It's coming up to Christmas and they're thinking - is there going to be an announcement? What do I look to do in the future?"

He says the constant focus on the auto industry is having a huge impact on the health of workers.

"One of my mates I spoke to last night, he's just hoping the axe will drop, he made the comment that he just feels like the chicken on the block, and he's just hoping to be put out of his misery - he said: 'I'm over it I really don't care any more'."

Mr Etherington says the spectre of closure is a constant presence that intrudes on every aspect of the workers' lives.

"Even when you're outside of work, you're not getting any release or any respite, because it doesn't matter where you go someone's already prejudged you," he said.

"I remember somebody showing me a photo of a village in France, underneath this massive overhang and it looks like this overhang is about to collapse and apparently the village has been there for hundreds of years, so people after a while have gone 'when it happens it happens', I'll deal with it then.

"And I think in some respects that's the same thing in the vehicle industry - you expect it to come, you're just not sure when."

'Nobody questions the $4.5 billion to the mining industry'

Mr Etherington says the media contributes to this focus, unfairly targeting subsidies on the auto industry, while ignoring those that support mining and agriculture, and that translates to how Holden workers are viewed by the public.

"Nobody ever questions $4.5 billion for the mining industry, but the second any form of subsidy is talked about for the car industry it becomes a handout," he said.

"It's the rank unfairness of the whole thing, the vehicle industry is singled out, I mean in the case of the mining industry they're making big profits, why is there is a fuel excise?"

And it was this constant pressure that led to him making the decision to leave the company after a decade.

"And after a while you've just had enough, you would go down to the shops you'd be wearing your Holden uniform, someone would have a go at you, and I thought I've done 10 years of this, I've had enough," he said.

"It wears you down mentally ... I would be on afternoon shift, as soon as smoko would come if there'd been some sort of media announcement and everybody's phone would be going off - it would be partners, friends, mates 'oh this was just on the news, what going on', and you'd go 'I don't know, I've just been at work building cars'."

Despite leaving Holden to set up a baby supplies business with his wife, Mike remains a staunch advocate of the car industry in Australia, and says the wider public needs to understand all car manufacturing is subsidised by governments globally.

"Everyone who works in the vehicles industry or knows some who works in the industry all understand that car manufacturing is subsidised all over the world, but the second you step out of the community you get 'oh yeah, Holden will pay all that back'," he said.

And he says across Adelaide businesses are already feeling the impact of the uncertainty.

"There are a lot of small businesses that are seeing the downturn from the uncertainty over Holden's future," he said.

"I went to a meeting of small and medium businesses owners a couple of nights ago and we're scattered across Adelaide .... and we were all saying the same thing - turnovers are down, there is no real Christmas boom, it all seems to have suddenly dropped in a hole in the last two weeks."