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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-05-16 Daily Xml
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Safe Rates Campaign

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (15:43): I rise today to speak about the important work of the Transport Workers Union's continued advocacy for safe rates for transport workers. This speech today will be the first of a number of speeches, mainly because the campaign is so varied and has so many facets to it that it would not do it justice with a five-minute speech today. I would also like to acknowledge Matt Burnell, who has played a leading role in the Safe Rates campaign, who is in the gallery at the moment. Matt has seen the carnage on the road that the Safe Rates campaign is seeking to stop.

In 2017, 185 people were killed in 168 crashes involving heavy trucks across Australia. Statistics show that fatal crashes involving heavy and articulated trucks are increasing nationally. Shockingly enough, in the past 10 years, 2,500 people have died in truck-related accidents on our roads. That is almost five a week. We have all seen on the TV the results of these appalling crashes involving trucks with passenger cars and the sort of carnage, death and destruction which is left in their wake.

These figures are alarming and should give us all cause to reflect on the conditions of truck drivers. Low wages, long hours and tight time frames from retailers put massive pressure on trucking companies and their drivers. These pressures put every road user at risk.

Truck drivers and their families have long been fighting for change. For over 20 years now, the Transport Workers Union has been fighting for safe rates and safer roads for all Australians. Every truck driver should be guaranteed the use of a well-maintained vehicle, should never be at risk of falling asleep at the wheel and should never be under pressure to meet a near-impossible deadline. This means that truck drivers must be guaranteed rates and conditions that ensure they are paid for every hour, every kilometre and every cost.

When a transport worker leaves home and gives their loved ones a kiss, these loved ones expect their mother or father to come home at night. Unfortunately, this is all too often not occurring. Through community industrial action, the Transport Workers Union has had some big wins, including the establishment of the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal and national agreements with major transport companies such as Toll and Linfox. Despite these wins, the national death toll is still far too high and there is a lot more work to do.

The Transport Workers Union continues to collate evidence which shows a direct relationship between pay and conditions for truck drivers and safety on our roads. Their own internal research shows that every 10 per cent more that drivers earn in pay is associated with an 18.7 per cent lower probability of a crash. While pressuring drivers to work faster and longer may sound like efficiency in the boardroom meeting, for everyone else who uses our roads it can be a recipe for disaster.

A Macquarie University study in January 2017 found a critical gap in national transport regulation, citing that there is no regulatory mechanism that can eliminate existing incentives for overly tight scheduling, unpaid work and rates that effectively are below cost. The Transport Workers Union's Safe Rates campaign is as critical now as it ever was. The transport industry needs safe rates for all transport workers as a matter of priority.

I call on the federal government to work with retailers and the Transport Workers Union to set safety standards in the industry and put an end to the carnage on our roads. I acknowledge the continued hard work of the Transport Workers Union in fighting for the rights and conditions of truck drivers, and I would also like to acknowledge the state secretary, Ian Smith, for the great work the state branch of the Transport Workers Union is doing in conjunction with the federal office.

I urge all members to understand and present to learn more about this campaign and lend their support. The first step in showing your support can be to sign up to the Safe Rates campaign at www.saferates.org.au. It is incumbent upon this chamber to support any efficiencies or any campaign that seeks to reduce the death on our roads. What we need to do is make our roads look more like a highway to get people safely from one town to another, instead of looking like a war zone, which it currently does. I urge all members to support this campaign, to get on the website and sign up.

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