The rate needs increasing: The determination rate of $27 per hour is definitely short-changing you. The rate needs increasing: Your take home income is shrinking while on road costs are accelerating.
Stand with the TWU to lift industry standards: Companies like Uber freight, Amazon Flex and Australia Post are working to undercut the industry and exploit workers to maintain their company profits. This steals your work away. Stand with us to lock in standards for a fairer industry.
Safeguarding your future income: The TWU has done the calculations and we know that a base rate of $40 per hour will lift the rate closer to today’s standards. This will safeguard your take home pay. You can do your job, meet your costs and still support your family and business.
How to join the Fight for $40:
You can take part in the TWU Fight for $40: Join the TWU facebook group “TWU Fight for $40” here https://bit.ly/2DeMJkX
Talk to others about joining the TWU: They can call our Members’ Service Centre on 1800 729 909 or join online at https://member.twunsw.org.au/join/
TOLL ROAD PAIN
The opening of the NorthConnex tunnel that connects the M2 Motorway to the M1 Motorway sets a dangerous precedent for our industry. By forcing truck drivers underground, or they face a $194 fine, makes us ask, where next? As further infrastructure plans are announced in NSW what road will be the next to prejudice heavy vehicle operators?
The tunnel is possible due to the exploitative 40 plus year deal between Transurban and the NSW Government. This means that drivers will cop an increase of the toll cost by one percent per quarter. Already in the three months prior to opening. We have concerns this may well lead to many smaller businesses in the transport industry to bleed out.
Transport Workers need some relief. Owner-drivers already face a huge set of problems related to costs, government fees, rego, insurances and now road tolls.
There is no cost recovery for those forced onto a toll road. The economic investment that this and other toll roads are claimed to be is a misguided ideal from the NSW Government. Expenses for Truck Drivers, the costs of having a job in transport, are on the increase. Maintaining the overpriced toll road rort just adds to the pain they already feel.
A week ago, I stood beside Rob Woolley, a Mt Kuring-Gai based fleet operator who now faces a $50,000 toll road bill that he has never before had to pay. Now NorthConnex is open, a new cost forced on his business. We have other members who tell us it will cost them $250 a week to transport their truck just to start work. These are new costs not recoverable from a client.
Let’s look at ways of making the road fairer. Overnight, Pennant Hills road is nearly empty, can we not provide a freedom of choice to drivers to use the road then, and allow them to choose to not have to pay tolls?
In the meantime, the TWU are asking the following from the NSW Government and Transurban.
- No new tolls
- Compensation for any toll road increases from 2020 and for that compensation scheme to remain in place until the pandemic is finished.
- A cap on the tolls commercial vehicles pay.
- In the future, the NSW Government and Transurban will help operators of commercial vehicles facing hardship, even though Linkt and Transurban are currently refusing to do so.
- Industry Agreements will include clauses that include compensation for the costs of using toll roads.
- Government will make cost recovery easier by locking fair payment times into legislation. Transport industry businesses and owner-drivers should be paid within 30 days.