Truckies threaten to disrupt retailers

Transport Workers Union promises protests at retailers in bid to deliver pay rises for tens of thousands of workers.

TWU national secretary Michael Kaine. Picture: Gaye Gerard

The Transport Workers Union is threatening to stage protests and sit-ins at the country’s biggest retailers during a “winter of discontent” aimed at reducing supply chain pressure on transport companies and delivering wage and superannuation rises to tens of thousands of workers.

Enterprise agreements at major trucking companies — Toll, Linfox, StarTrack, FedEx — expire on June 30 and the union is pursuing new deals that deliver annual 3 per cent pay rises and a “pathway” to 15 per cent superannuation.

TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said the trucking companies had signalled to their workers they could not afford the pay and super rises as their margins were being squeezed by companies including Amazon, Apple, Aldi, IGA, OfficeWorks and ­Bunnings.

He said while the union would be prepared to take protected industrial action against the trucking companies, it would also pressure retailers to follow the lead set by Coles in December and sign a charter with the union on standards in road transport and the gig economy.

In a speech to be delivered to the union’s national council in Darwin on Tuesday, Mr Kaine will say major retailers “who sweat the trucking companies and the owner drivers are literally driving workers to their death”.

“For those retailers who think they can keep squeezing transport companies and their workforces, think again,” Mr Kaine says. “You are about to face a winter of discontent, followed by a spring offensive.”

While Coles opted for the gold standard, he says Woolworths “are more like silver” and needed to lift their game. Calling Aldi and a number of unnamed companies the “scrap metal standard”, he says these companies should “prepare for sit-ins, protests and all manner of fun and games”.

“I am not threatening disruption — I am promising it,” he says.

“We will hold you accountable for the misery you visit upon families and communities. Until you sign charters that guarantee safety, respect and dignity, we will not relent. We are not going away.”

Mr Kaine acknowledged on Monday that taking action against retailers in support of a claim against another employer ran the risk of an employer pursuing a secondary boycott case against the union.

“We’re being very careful. We’re bargaining with transport employers,” he said. “Transport employers are saying they can’t pay. If they can’t pay then that’s the impasse and some of our workforces will decide to take industrial action to try and break the impasse.

“As we are doing that we will be protesting and making the point that clients should be paying what is fair and stopping the squeeze on transport operators. We’ll be running both things in parallel and I’m assuming someone will try and put the two things together and have a crack at us.”

The union is writing to 50 retailers seeking negotiations for the charter.

“There are far too many truck crash deaths where fatigue, faulty brakes, loads not strapped down properly and even stimulants to stay awake are a factor. At the heart of this is an industry on its knees because the major retailers at the top continually squeeze transport operators and drivers to the point that safety is thrown out the window,” he said. “Retailers like Amazon and Aldi can boast about big profits but Australians are dying because of it.”