PREMIER Denis Napthine will ask Prime Minister Tony Abbott for assistance for Toyota workers when the pair meet this afternoon.

“What I’m after is some assistance from the Federal Government first and foremost for the workers at Toyota and in the supply chain who need assistance in transition with regard to certification of their skills and reskilling,” Dr Napthine told 3AW.

“And secondly and very very importantly, we need significant assistance from Canberra for key job creating infrastructure and key reforms to our Victorian economy.”

Dr Napthine said Toyota’s global president Akio Toyoda told him at 4pm yesterday of the company’s decision to exit the country in late 2017.

“I said immediately, is this decision irreversible, is there anything we can do as a state government to make this decision be reconsidered? He said absolutely irreversible, decision of the Toyota board and he is here to announce that decision,” Dr Napthine told 3AW.

“I was shocked by the suddenness of the decision, I was shocked by the fact that we’ve been having negotiations with Toyota for months and months and months.”

Dr Napthine, who will meet Toyota bosses today, where he said he would express his “concern about the suddenness of the decision”.

He said the loss of thousands of jobs at Toyota and in the wider components sector would be “challenging for our economy”.

Despite this, he did not believe the loss of all car manufacturing in three years would force the state into recession.

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“I don’t believe so, I think we’re a strong, robust economy that is growing at a moderate rate.”

Dr Napthine said the state would have new opportunities with the growth of China, including in the food and education industries and Toyota workers should take hope from that.

He said there was nothing the government could do to prevent Toyota’s exit.

In future, he said, Victorian workers needed to be more productive to be more competitive.

“What we need is workers to be more productive, it’s about productivity, productivity and efficiency is the key, not necessarily lower wages and less conditions.”

Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews said Dr Napthine had not fought hard enough to keep thousands of jobs in Victoria.

“The least you can do is have a go, have a crack, do something. This government under Denis Napthine’s leadership have done nothing whatsoever and now this industry is dead,” Mr Andrews said.

So sad for the people working for and associated with #Toyota. This is an avoidable situation, I'm sorry they didn't get the help they need. — Lauren (@LozVox) February 10, 2014

How do you feel about this decision? Post your thoughts in the comment box below or on social media using the #Toyota hashtag.

Premier Napthine says several thousand jobs in supply chain could be lost due to Toyota decision #springst #toyota pic.twitter.com/EkFP5a2DdO — Annika Smethurst (@annikasmethurst) February 10, 2014

“Our thoughts are with the workers, their families and many other Victorians who will feel the repercussions of this.”

Mr Andrews would not comment on reports the loss of Ford, Holden and Toyota over the next three years could tip the state into a recession.

“We will need to properly diagnose what the effect on the Victorian economy will be from the automotive industry vanishing.

“All the skills, competences, the hard work and all that intellectual property that will be lost to the Victorian economy and the manufacturing sector, I don’t think any of us truly know what the true impact of that will be.

Mr Andrews said it would be “a massive blow to our prosperity, to our future”.

“You can’t have an entire industry, an entire sector of the Victorian economy, die without all of us, all of us across Victoria paying a significant price for that.”

He said other industries, including defence, aerospace, research and development and food and fibre would need to become a bigger part of the state’s economy.

Toyota workers and some of their bosses were left dumbstruck and, in some cases, in floods of tears at the announcement at the company’s HQ in Port Melbourne yesterday.

Many who left the complex at the end of their shift were too upset to speak, but those who did said it was a bitter pill to swallow.

Mahveer Hira only joined in December to work in the IT department.

Mr Hira, 30, said: “It is devastating. I started not long ago and I’m speechless.

“It’s a sad day for Toyota, car manufacturing and Australia in general. I love Toyota, the company, the brand, but this leaves me totally gutted.”

One worker, who did not want to be named, said: “I hope Tony Abbott is happy.”

John Sampson, who has worked for the car giant for 35 years, said: “It’s very disappointing. The mood in there was very sad when they announced it. We’ve only just been told so it’s a lot to digest in a short space of time.”

At the company’s manufacturing hub in Altona, Lino Arturi said: “It’s a sad day for employees, we are still trying to let this sink in.

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“I have been with the company for almost 14 years, I feel a bit hollow, even though we knew the writing may have been on the wall. I thought we were heading in the right direction, saving as much money as we could.

“From what I can tell, the cost of manufacturing in Australia is becoming more and more difficult.”

One day I'll be telling my kids that we once built cars in Australia. This sucks. #auspol #toyota — JTP (@johntassparker) February 10, 2014

The 46-year-old works in investment planning and admitted it was hard to say what he would do next. “You move on and you have to be positive, but it has come as a shock,” he added.

Dennis Dinh, a 24-year Toyota worker, is considering retiring early now, but warned it would be difficult to find work in the area.

Australian manufacturing workers union vehicle manufacturing secretary Dave Smith said he was fearful of the impact of the job losses on workers.

Previously about one third of workers in similar situations had found jobs quickly, one third took longer to find work and a final third never worked again.

“I think it’s going to be very very hard for those workers and their families. It’s going to be a very difficult time,” Mr Smith said.

“What we found when Mitsubishi closed was there were a lot of workers who fell into drug and alcohol problems, there were domestic violence issues, there were suicides, mental health issues, all of these things need to be very carefully managed because they are real, they will happen.

“It’s very unfortunate but it’s the result when you take away a person’s job, the dignity that goes with that job, it creates enormous social problems.”

Mr Smith said the federal government had talked about future opportunities for workers but it had not given any details on what options workers had.

“Governments, the state government, the federal government, unions we need to be sitting down, we need to be talking about what we can do to create jobs,” Mr Smith said.

“It’s always pretty difficult when you’ve got a coalition government, it’s difficult for unions to sit down with them because they’re simply not interested but this is a time where all the parties need to really get together and work out what we’re going to do to replace these jobs.”

Mr Smith criticised Dr Napthine for not doing enough to try to save the auto industry in Victoria.

“Really the Premier last year should have been out and about and been very public and calling the federal government out about the automotive industry, demanding that they back the automotive industry in, he hasn’t, the industry’s gone.”

At the Port Melbourne HQ, staff were resigned to spending the immediate future job-hunting.

John, who asked that his surname not be published, said: “I have worked in purchasing for the last five years and there are no ifs about it — I have to find a new job.

“It’s a black day for Australian manufacturing. For the majority here, it is absolutely devastating. A lot of people will be looking for new jobs.”

Toyota’s announcement will bring an end to vehicle manufacturing in Australia — and any hope of a revival — after more than 100 years. ­Vehicles have been assembled here since the early 1900s.

david.hurley@news.com.au