Aldi protest: Truck drivers fire up over safety concerns
Truck drivers walked off the job at Aldi’s Sydney headquarters today and rallied for action after shocking footage exposed safety fears this week.
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Truck drivers have walked off the job this morning to demand action after shocking footage exposed safety fears for Aldi workers this week.
Transport Worker’s Union (TWU) members rallied outside Aldi’s Sydney headquarters in Minchinbury this morning to call on the German supermarket giant to urgently improve conditions for workers.
But a spokesman from the supermarket chain said the claims are “false and misleading”.
The protest follows the release of photos and videos exposing conditions the union claims is putting workers at risk, including loading docks inundated with water near electricity outlets, blocked safety exits, food being left to rot in delivery areas and goods being stacked unsafely.
TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said drivers were being put under increasing pressure on the roads, which was putting lives in danger.
“Direct drivers for Aldi and drivers in the broader Aldi supply chain are contacting us saying they’re under extreme pressure — hours pressure, pressure on deadlines and pressure on pay,” Mr Kaine said.
“In this industry, if you have pressure on pay, in order to put food on the table, it means you either have to work too long or too fast and that is a deadly recipe on our roads.”
Mr Kaine said the union was calling on Aldi to sit down and discuss how to address what they claim are “systemic issues” in the supply chain.
“We are protesting today because we want an end to this disregard for safety. We want Aldi to come to the table and discuss with how their supply chain can be made safer,” he said.
But Aldi spokesman Damien Scheidel labelled the union’s claims as “lies” and has taken the union over the allegations.
“The TWU has on multiple occasions accused Aldi of deaths on roads, underpaying employees, knowingly placing employees in harm’s way, violating heavy vehicle regulations, poorly maintaining our transport fleet, ignoring responsibilities within our supply chain and silencing workers,” Mr Scheidel said.
“All of these claims are lies and we will not stand accused of such actions.
“It is our view that the TWU are more interested in leveraging our good brand for their
own influence and political gain than addressing transport safety issues.”
Mr Scheidel stood by the company’s safety practices.
“We are proud of our transport operations and transport employees and we operate at, and frequently beyond, the industry’s best practise,” he said.
“We work to keep our people safe by training and paying them well, running a modern fleet of vehicles, observing good maintenance practices, providing easy hazard reporting mechanisms and building a safety first culture.”
This year alone, 165 people have died in truck crashes in Australia, with 44 of those being truck drivers.
Truckie Dimitri Mavrothalassitis said there were rising concerns across the transport industry concerning workers’ safety.
“When companies are putting downward pressure on delivery times, it does cause a ripple effect, from everything through to fatigue, through to unsafe work practices,” Mr Mavrothalassitis said.
“It means a lot of drivers, in order to meet those deadlines, are not taking breaks at the prescribed times.
“With downward financial pressure it restricts them from being able to properly service and maintain their trucks because they’re having to fight to put food on the table.”
Mr Kaine said Aldi drivers could not attend the protest becuase they feared repercussions.
“Today we had drivers protesting who are in the Aldi supply chain who are fearful about safety,” Mr Kaine said.
“We also had drivers protesting from other industries who know that the downward pressure that wealthy retailers puts on rates affects their job security and safety.”