Paccar Australia has recruited more than 120 people for the Bayswater manufacturing facility due to increasing truck production demand.
Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and the stage 4 lockdowns in Victoria, there is still “strength and resilience” in the industry, Paccar Australia managing director Andrew Hadjikakou says.
“Paccar Australia and its divisions have been identified as a permitted industry and continue to operate with a COVID Safe Plan, which keeps our employees and those we do business with healthy and safe.
“We will continue to build trucks and provide essential services to our customers to keep Australia moving.
“Recent customer demand for trucks has driven the need for increased truck production in the coming months … this has resulted in the recruitment of more than 120 people for the Bayswater manufacturing facility.
“We are immensely proud we are able to employ more people and support economic growth within the local community, especially in light of the ongoing uncertainty in the operating environment,” Hadjikakou says.
It comes as a boost for Australian manufacturing and increased truck production in the coming months will boost its related engineering and administrative support at its head office in Melbourne.
“The current operating environment globally is uncertain, and especially in Victoria at the moment, but we are immensely proud we are able to employ more people and support economic growth within the local community,” Hadjikakou says.
“We have been manufacturing Kenworths in Australia for 49 years and the majority of our suppliers of component parts are small-to-medium businesses, many of whom are local to our factory. When we increase our production, they increase their production. The flow on effect through our local supply chain means many more people are affected than just the people we are employing.
“We hope our customers understand when they buy from us, as an Australian manufacturer, the choice they make positively impacts the lives of many Australians.
“The increase in staff is not only a great boost for the local economy, but it’s great for morale …
“Despite the positive news, COVID-19 has not left us unscathed. Our operations team has worked to make manufacturing Kenworths and assembling DAFs at the plant in Melbourne safe for all workers according to the Government’s guidelines on social distancing and maintaining health standards,” Hadjikakou says.
