Truck Driving is Australia's Most Dangerous Job

• General News
• 5th February 2014

The fatality rate in the road freight sector is 15 times the rate in all other industries and that is frightening!

The deadly statistics are contained in an official report from federal government OH&S agency Safe Work Australia.

523 truck drivers have died while doing their job in the past 10 years.

This makes truck driving the most dangerous of all occupations.

The figures do NOT include the 100’s of motorists who are killed in crashes involving trucks.

Despite this alarming proof that trucking is extremely dangerous, we have Coalition governments - both federal and state - currently reviewing existing laws that were established to make our industry safer.

The Abbott government seems determined to abolish the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal and the Safe Rates Laws that were introduced by the Gillard government.

The laws have been in long enough to have an impact but they are good laws that will target the grubs in the industry who drive truckies into the ground.

In WA the Barnett Government is reviewing the Owner Driver Act which has been in force since 2008.

Both sets of laws recognise that remuneration of truck drivers is linked to safety in the industry.

The less drivers are paid the longer hours they work and the harder they push themselves to make a living.

Fatigue boundaries are stretched and breached, which causes more truck crashes and fatalities.

Rampant, totally unregulated, rate cutting also causes freight companies and owner-drivers to cut vehicle maintenance costs which results in more unsafe heavy vehicles on the road.

Abbott and Barnett can expect a fierce fight from the TWU and its members on both fronts.