Komatsu Will Close Its Moss Vale Factory by 2030, Putting About 265 Jobs at Risk

Komatsu Mining plans to close its Moss Vale plant by 2030, cutting about 265 jobs at the Southern Highlands site, after announcing the plan on Tuesday, November 10. Roles will go in six phases through to 2030, AMWU senior organiser Nathan Everson said the company told the union, and consultation on the staged changes will begin in January 2027. Komatsu says work will shift to Rutherford in the NSW Hunter Valley and Rockhampton in Central Queensland, with some fabrication and machining going to Australian suppliers. The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union says Komatsu told union officials that original equipment work will move to China. For Metaintro readers working at the plant, supplying it, or hoping to work in Australian manufacturing, this guide sets out the timeline, the support Komatsu has promised, and the redundancy rules that apply.

What Did Komatsu Announce for Moss Vale?

The decision came from Underground Soft Rock Australasia, the Australian underground division of Komatsu Mining, which will close the Moss Vale facility as part of a restructure of its Australian operations. The site currently employs approximately 265 people, and about 265 jobs will go as Komatsu winds down operations at the Moss Vale plant.

Staff at all three of the division's sites heard the news at once, through simultaneous briefings attended by senior leadership.

Helen Gibson, vice-president of Underground Soft Rock Australasia, put the restructure down to the company's need to "simplify operations" and respond to changes in the Australian market and customer requirements. She called it "part of a bigger strategic reset designed to strengthen our Australian underground division".

Komatsu is one of the Southern Highlands' largest employers.

How Will the Wind-Down Work Between Now and 2030?

Komatsu confirmed the plant will continue normal operations during the staged transition, with existing customer contracts to go ahead as scheduled. Future work will be progressively directed to the other facilities.

Roles are expected to be impacted progressively over the next four years.

From January 2027, the timing and impacts for individual work groups will be discussed directly with affected employees and their representatives.

Where Is the Moss Vale Work Going, and Who Says So?

The two sides describe the destination differently, so here is each account in its owner's words.

In Komatsu's plan, work will transfer to Rutherford in the Hunter Valley, Rockhampton in Queensland, and external Australian suppliers. Under the company plan, Rutherford would expand its electrical, overhaul and rebuild capabilities, while Rockhampton would take on additional gearbox, rebuild and final assembly work.

The union gives a different account of the equipment work. AMWU senior organiser Nathan Everson said that "original equipment, so OE work, is going to be transitioning to China", based on what the company told union officials at the site meeting. He added that the company had intimated that the fabrication of machining was not competitive in the market anymore.

Everson also flagged that the Rutherford site will also be losing some work due to this restructure.

Our employees were among the first to know and, importantly, there will be no immediate changes for them. Komatsu executive Helen Gibson

What Support Has Komatsu Promised Moss Vale Workers?

Komatsu has promised that support will be provided as employees are affected by the staged transition, including confidential counselling for staff and their families. Eligible workers will have access to an employee transition and outplacement program.

Apprentices will receive support to finish their qualifications, including exploring alternative placements if required.

Komatsu has developed a support package aimed at helping staff explore new opportunities, seek retraining or education and potentially secure alternative positions within the business.

Under the company's plan, any redundancies will be managed under the Fair Work Act 2009 and applicable enterprise agreements or awards.

Can Moss Vale Workers Transfer to Rutherford or Rockhampton?

Komatsu's underground division will consider suitable vacancies at Rutherford and Rockhampton and assess relocation assistance case by case, and suitable vacancies and transfer opportunities will be communicated as they are confirmed.

If a job is made redundant, the employer must offer you another suitable role if they can, and a suitable role takes into account your skills and experience, current hours and pay, and is at a suitable location. The flip side is that if you refuse to be redeployed to a suitable new role, then you may not be eligible for redundancy pay, the Australian Unions redundancy factsheet explains.

What Redundancy Pay and Notice Does Australian Law Set?

Your redundancy pay period is set by section 119 of the National Employment Standards, and it is based on the employees' period of continuous service. The full minimum scale is:

• 1 to 2 years of service, 4 weeks
• 2 to 3 years, 6 weeks
• 3 to 4 years, 7 weeks
• 4 to 5 years, 8 weeks
• 5 to 6 years, 10 weeks
• 6 to 7 years, 11 weeks
• 7 to 8 years, 13 weeks
• 8 to 9 years, 14 weeks
• 9 to 10 years, 16 weeks
• 10+ years, 12 weeks, reduced on the assumption that employees also have long service leave

Those are minimums, and certain Awards, agreements or employment contracts provide for more. Redundancy pay uses your base weekly rate of pay at the time that you are made redundant and does not include allowances, penalty rates, loadings or bonuses.

You are also entitled to be given notice of termination, in addition to your redundancy pay. Under section 117 of the Fair Work Act 2009, the notice period depends on your continuous service with the employer. A worker employed for more than 5 years is owed a period of 4 weeks' notice or payment in lieu of notice, and a worker who is over 45 years of age with more than 2 years of continuous service gets 1 more week. If your service is shorter, contact your union if you need help working out how much notice you are entitled to.

Those who usually do not qualify for redundancy pay include casual employees, employees of a small business, and anyone who has been employed for less than a year, and the conclusion of a fixed-term contract or an apprenticeship is not considered a redundancy.

A redundancy is not genuine if the employer's operational needs have not changed or you were not consulted, and it may also not count as genuine if you could reasonably be employed somewhere else in the business or an associated business. If the redundancy is not genuine, the employee may claim it as an unfair dismissal.

Your final pay should include:

• outstanding wages (including penalty rates and allowances)
• accumulated annual leave and annual leave loading (if applicable)
• accrued or pro-rata long service leave (if applicable)
• redundancy pay (if being made redundant)
• pay in lieu of notice (if being dismissed)

Long service leave entitlements will be determined by state or territory long service leave legislation unless a pre-reform award applies, and Moss Vale is in NSW. In NSW, after 10 years of continuous service with the same employer, you are entitled to 2 months (8.6667 weeks) of paid long service leave, and if your employer dismisses you after 5 years but less than 10 years of continuous service, you are entitled to pro-rata long service leave, unless the dismissal was for serious and wilful misconduct. A common pitfall for workers in NSW is resigning without specific grounds before reaching 10 years of service, because if your employment ends after 5 years but less than 10 years of continuous service, you are only entitled to pro-rata long service leave if you resign due to illness, incapacity, or domestic or other pressing necessity.

What Help Is Available Outside Komatsu?

Employees and their partners have immediate access to tailored employment services under the Early Access Initiative, before they're eligible for income support. Employers can also use the Transition Support Network, which can guide them and their staff through the retrenchment process.

The Workplace Advice Service is a free, independent legal assistance program for small businesses and employees, offered by the Fair Work Commission, with advice on topics including dismissal and general protections, and it has its own eligibility rules.

Under fee-free apprenticeships, you and your employer do not pay upfront training costs while you train for a job, and the NSW Government is paying the course cost for new government funded apprenticeships until June 2027. NSW offers more than 120 different apprenticeship courses, and you can apply if you are a NSW apprentice or NSW school-based apprentice and start Smart and Skilled apprenticeship training before 30 June 2027.

The NSW Government is covering the student fee for 70,000 Smart and Skilled traineeship courses until 30 June 2027, subject to availability, though Existing Worker Traineeships (EWT) are commercial fee-for-service and not eligible. The two eligible types are School-based traineeship, and New Entrant Traineeships (NET). To be eligible, you must:

• be employed as a trainee
• be signed up with Apprenticeship Connect Australia Provider (ACAP)
• be funded under the NSW Government's Smart and Skilled Program
• have commenced your traineeship course on or after 1 January 2020
• not have exceeded the maximum of three fee-free traineeships under this initiative

We have deliberately planned a transition over several years to give our people time to consider their options and access the support available to them. Underground Soft Rock Australasia vice president Helen Gibson

What Does the Closure Mean for the Southern Highlands?

Business Southern Highlands chair Greg Welsh expects the loss of skilled, well-paid jobs to be felt by local shops as well as the engineering firms, hydraulics businesses and component suppliers that service the plant. He estimated the region could lose about A$20 million a year in household spending (about US$13.7 million) if workers and their families leave the area.

Everson warned it was "going to be a struggle for workers to find work in the area", and he described the Moss Vale workers as "blindsided".

Federal, state and local representatives have responded. NSW Domestic Manufacturing Minister Courtney Houssos has been in touch with the AMWU and has pledged to monitor the impact of the job losses. Whitlam MP Carol Berry planned to meet Komatsu on Thursday to ask why it was closing the plant and how it planned to support workers, and Wingecarribee Mayor Erin Foley has committed council to seek a meeting with Komatsu and press for support for workers.

Komatsu also plans to enter talks with unions, suppliers, and clients during the wind-down.

What This Means for Moss Vale Workers and Job Seekers, and What Should You Do Next?

A closure that runs through to 2030 in stages means the plant's roles do not all go at once, and workers who plan before consultation opens can give themselves more choices than waiting for a phase date would. Here is how to use it.

• Work out your floor now. Count your years of continuous service and check the minimum redundancy pay scale.
• Finish your ticket. Apprentices should hold Komatsu to its promise of support to finish their qualifications.
• Decide on relocation early. If Rutherford or Rockhampton appeals, say so in consultation, since relocation assistance is assessed case by case.
• Use the Early Access Initiative. Under the Early Access Initiative, employees and their partners can use tailored employment services before they are eligible for income support.
• Map your skills to other work. If your work is fabrication or machining, the case for transferable skills over a new degree is worth a read, and how to job search with AI after a layoff covers the search itself.

Lacey Kaelani, Metaintro's CEO, puts it this way: A closure date four years out is a head start, not a deadline. Use the time before your phase to get your tickets, your service record and your next option in order, so that when your phase comes you are choosing, not scrambling.

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People Also Asked

Q: When will the Komatsu Moss Vale plant close?

A: Komatsu plans to close the plant by 2030, with roles going in six phases through to 2030, according to the AMWU's account of the company briefing and consultation starting in January 2027.

Q: How many jobs are affected by the Moss Vale closure?

A: The site currently employs approximately 265 people, and about 265 jobs will go as the plant winds down.

Q: Is Komatsu moving Moss Vale work to China?

A: Komatsu says work will go to Rutherford, Rockhampton and external Australian suppliers, while the AMWU says the company told it that original equipment work is going to be transitioning to China.

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