A REVERSING forklift caused a scare during the Prime Minister's tour of a western Melbourne factory this morning.

Julia Gillard was touring the LinFox distribution centre in Altona when a forklift driver appeared not to see her group and reversed towards it.

The Prime Minister was one of several people who screamed at the driver to stop, causing a scare among her advisers.

The forklift came within half a metre of a press photographer, and was within three metres of the Prime Minister.

Ms Gillard has often expressed concern about the safety of the media pack travelling with her, particularly when walking near busy streets.

It was not the only mishap during her short visit. Following an address to a group of workers, the Prime Minister lost a high-heeled shoe when stepping off the back of a forklift.

LinFox worker Rob Stewart was quick to her rescue, replacing the shoe for her Cindarella-style.

Ms Gillard spoke to workers about her election platform saying her focus was on protecting jobs.

"Here in this country we stepped up to protect jobs, kept more than 200,000 Australians working and at the same time we made sure they were working in decent working conditions by getting rid of WorkChoices," she said.