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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-11-02 Daily Xml
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TWU Safe Rates Campaign

The Hon. T.T. NGO (15:41): I rise to draw the attention of members to the Safe Rates campaign, a campaign devised by the Transport Workers Union (TWU) that aims to improve the safety of our truck drivers here in Australia and through which the TWU expresses solidarity globally, with colleagues who transport the goods and the materials that communities and economies rely upon.

The support of the TWU is vital because every working day professional freight drivers run the real risk of injury or death. This unacceptable risk is due in large part to gruelling schedules and taxing delivery deadlines. These schedules and deadlines put pressure on people to drive for longer in adverse conditions and while battling fatigue, and to drive heavy vehicles that might not be properly maintained. Add to that low pay and incentive rates and the result is risk for all road users.

The TWU, truckies and their fellow workers in the supply chain have long advocated for a fairer road transport industry; an industry that comprehends that safe pay rates for truckies will mean safer roads for all. This push is not confined to just our Australian drivers. It is a worldwide movement underpinned by the declaration of the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) which has recognised drivers' rights to safe and fair remuneration and their rights to fair working conditions and union representation.

Despite this, workers continue to be exploited both here and around the world. Efforts to secure and maintain fundamental rights are not confined to our country, nor is resistance to them. For example, South Korea is a major regional trading partner and a country where heavy vehicle transport is one of the keys to continued prosperity. The TWU has continually expressed solidarity with its counterparts there, condemning violence against drivers peacefully striking for basic entitlements.

The issues in contention are the same as those faced locally: low and stagnant pay rates and safety risks including injury and death due to long hours and unrealistic deadlines. TWU officials have visited gaoled union leaders in South Korea and attended drivers' protests. These drivers desperately need the support of their colleagues around the world. Just last month, protesters in Sydney called on South Korea to respect the rights of workers to protest and called for the withdrawal of laws allowing workers to be paid less and to be easily sacked.

The TWU also condemned the attacks, injuries and arrests suffered by workers and members of the Korean Federation of Public Services and Transportation Workers' Union, who oppose the government's plan to deregulate the truck transport sector. Shockingly, it appears that the mandating of oppressive measures against South Korean workers is receiving official support. I am told that officials have threatened punishments, including suspension of fuel subsidies, criminal charges and licence cancellations for these strikers. Unions around the world have condemned these threats. The TWU says:

The fight in South Korea is important in the worldwide effort to win a global standard…for truck drivers—which is also the best way to improve road safety.

We have seen that, both in Australia and in countries like South Korea, the only shield protecting heavy vehicle drivers from repression, unsafe work practices and exploitation is their union. I commend the support being given to South Korean workmates by the TWU. Without their constant campaigns for better pay, working conditions and occupational health and safety of truck drivers here and around the world, the consequences would be greater in scale and complexity than we can contemplate. I therefore thank the TWU for their continuing campaign to fight for basic workers' rights, not only for truck drivers here but also around the world, especially in developing countries.

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