| We’ve discussed workplace Health & Safety in this newsletter multiple times in recent weeks. This is because as transport workers, we know that our industry is the most dangerous in Australia. And again and again, we see examples of employers failing to provide their workers with safe workplaces. Recent fatalities at Mascot and elsewhere, as well as tragic deaths of truck drivers and gig workers on NSW roads this year, only serve to remind us of how important it is to hold employers and clients to account. |
| This week, a TWU Health & Safety Representative issued three Provisional Improvement Notices (PINs) to Qantas Freight. Under the fragmentation of aviation in the last decade, safety has suffered. Issuing these PINs is a brave act, and once again showcases the critical role the TWU plays in working to make NSW workplaces safer. TWU members are standing together to fight the race to the bottom, and ensure that employers are responsive to the safety concerns of their workers. It’s time for Qantas Freight to act. I would also like to acknowledge all workers who are putting in their time and labour over this Labour Day long weekend. Labour day is an opportunity every year to stop and celebrate the importance of solidarity, the union movement, and the labour of everyday workers who strive to build a better future. I wish you all a happy and safe Labour Day. |
October 1 – Tolls Up Yet Again
On the first of October, tolls once again increased across the NSW Road Network.
Transport workers rely on access to NSW’s road network to conduct essential business that keeps the state moving. In many cases, such as with NorthConnex, drivers have no option but to use the toll road option. Small transport business continues to be in crisis, with owner drivers and business owners burdened with the use of toll roads, zeroing out of profit, and offered little relief thus far.
The union has been consistently and relentlessly calling for fairness in this space. 3-Tonne trucks paying the same rate as a fully-loaded B-Double is a confounding inequity which is not tenable in the long term. Workers are under increasing pressure, and October’s rate hike will only increase the problem.
Recent announcements from the NSW Government seem to indicate that toll relief for private vehicles will be winding up this year, however, with the review package underway, what will replace it is yet to be seen.
Promisingly, NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey, a TWU Member, announced at the TWU Delegates Conference that the Government would be undertaking further review and consultation in the near future. The TWU maintains that any toll review package must review the impact of tolls holistically, on private commuters, but also transport operators and drivers which can no longer afford to operate in these conditions.
TWU Secretary Richard Olsen says, “On October 1, Transport Workers are being slugged with yet another price hike on NSW Roads. We welcome the Treasurer saying that transport workers are in-mind, and will be asking the NSW Government to ensure that the Transport Workers’ Union is a part of any further consultation in this space.”
