A car fleet management company says it has had to lay off a quarter of its staff as a result of federal government changes to tax concessions on company vehicles.
Fleetcare, which bills itself as Australia's largest independent fleet management company, says demand for salary-packaged vehicles has evaporated as a result of the government's announcement last week.
The company's founder Nigel Malcolm said 20 staff - a quarter of Fleetcare's workforce - would lose their jobs this week as a result of the changes.
The company was forced to cancel a string of orders last week and demand for new leases has almost dropped off completely since the announcement, he said.
Under changes announced by the Rudd government, people who receive a company car as part of a salary package will need to use log books to document the vehicles' use for both personal and business purposes.
Their employers will then have to pay fringe benefits tax on the portion of vehicle costs relating to private use.
Mr Malcolm said it was a "devastating" time for the company and put the blame for the job losses on the federal government.
"The worst part of this is that it is all so unnecessary," he said.
"If the government had consulted the industry, we could have worked out a plan that delivered a more positive outcome for everyone."
He called on the government to reverse its planned changes, which Treasurer Chris Bowen says will save $1.8 billion over four years.
The savings will be used to support Australia's $3.8 billion transition from a fixed carbon price to a floating emissions trading scheme (ETS) linked to Europe a year earlier than expected.
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