Lance Gush: Workers First Union Organiser on the call to ease time pressures on truck drivers

Truck drivers are feeling increased pressure to deliver on time – even breaking the law to do so. 

The Workers First Union believes the timeframes set up for drivers to complete jobs within allocated driving hours is unachievable. 

The union signed up to support the Safe Rates international labour campaign, which makes employers and customers responsible for the financial pressures put on drivers. 

Union organiser Lance Gush told Andrew Dickens the campaign makes a level playing field for those fighting for contracts. 

He says companies are dropping vehicles out of their fleets in order to try to keep up with contract costs. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Exhausted truck drivers say they're being pushed to speed, skip brakes,
and bend the law just to keep the freight moving
in this great country of ours. Unions warn the cutthroat
industry of slashing safety and putting everybody on the road
at risk. So Lance Gush is from the Workers First Union,
he's an organizer, joins you this morning, Good morning to

(00:21):
your Lance.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Good morning, Andrew, how are you good?

Speaker 1 (00:24):
How did you find out that the conditions are this bad?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
Our role is to advocate and support represent drivers and
working in amongst them and getting a field for the industry.
There's a lot of pressure put on them to deliver
on time and full but certainly unacceptable time limits.

Speaker 1 (00:48):
Okay, well, why are these conditions so bad?

Speaker 2 (00:52):
The system set up to give all the power to
the large companies that are paying these freight companies to
move their goods, and effectively they're in control. Pre companies
are undercutting each other to get the contracts because we'll
live in a small country and it's super competitive. We've
had examples of companies that have had to hit drop

(01:16):
just to maintain and keep the contracts. They've had to
drop three vehicles out of a ninety vehicle fleet expect
with the expectation to provide the same service and deliver
the same amount of products.

Speaker 1 (01:27):
Well, if the margins are so tight for the frasers,
they can't really afford to have more drivers, which will
be the answer to the problem. So what is there
an answer?

Speaker 2 (01:36):
Save Freights is a campaign that's global and what it
does is it effectively sets a bottom line or a
floor that they are unable to go below. It's mandated
by the government and produce quarterly and effectively. It says
that this is the fifth strate of providing these services,

(01:58):
and that way it gives a level playing field for
the companies that are tendering for these agreements.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
So they have to change their conditions voluntarily.

Speaker 2 (02:09):
This system will mean that the government mandates it and
regulates it, and that way, the larger businesses that are
providing this or that are driving this are unable to
be offered anything less than the floor.

Speaker 1 (02:26):
Are people still wanting to become truckies or is there
a shortage?

Speaker 2 (02:31):
Look, we were experiencing a shortage. You know, I live
in Auckland. Everyone here knows that there's seems to be
a lot more heavy vehicles on the road so, but
I think the model is changing. From what we can see,
it seems like businesses are moving away from having permanent
employees and moving more towards either the owner driver models

(02:55):
or the use of contractors to try and mitigate losses.
Is really what that comes down to.

Speaker 1 (03:00):
Sounds like you're on the road right now, are you.

Speaker 2 (03:03):
I'm literally on my way to catch up with seventy
of my drivers I represent. We're heading into baggining and
just wanting to get a feel for what a fear
and reasonable pay increase would look like for them in
this one.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
All right, all right, we'll give them, give them my best,
and thank you so much for keeping all the goods
on the roads and keeping the economy moving. And I
thank you for your time. That a lands Gush the
Workers First union organizer.

Speaker 2 (03:25):
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