Death toll pushes call for reform in transport industry

Transport workers could soon have a standard-setting body to ensure fair and safe conditions as unions warn of deadly consequences without reform.

Uber, Doordash, Woolworths, Coles, major transport operators, industry associations and the Transport Workers Union met Employment Minister Tony Burke on Monday, ahead of the federal government’s jobs and skills summit later this week.

The organisations agreed to back proposed reforms to lift standards for transport workers and ensure a safe, sustainable and fair road transport industry.

Transport Workers Union national secretary Michael Kaine said the industry was in a state of crisis.

“No one wants their food delivered knowing that the person who’s knocking at the door is under deadly pressure,” Kaine told reporters in Canberra.

“Inaction means death, inaction means an industry that’s not sustainable and is not building the structures to ensure that those pressures are lifted,” he said.

“We want this done now, we want it done as urgently as possible.”

The push for industry reform comes after more than 50 transport workers were killed at work in the past year.

Hundreds of truck drivers, industry leaders and gig workers descended on the nation’s capital in July to call for safety reforms.

Kaine said the gig economy was “dragging down standards” for transport workers.

“This is the Wild West … the gig economy is now inextricably linked in transport. They need to be dealt with together,” he said.

The agreed principles call for the government to establish an independent body with powers to set work standards, promote best practice in the supply and contract chain industry, and resolve disputes effectively.

The body would also give transport workers access to a collective voice and would convene regularly to provide advice and recommendations to the government.

Australian Road Transport Industrial Organisation national secretary Peter Anderson said the industry was suffering and would be unable to meet the needs of the community.

“The more that we ignore the fact that the people are what make the industry work, the harder it’s going to be for us to meet those expectations in the future,” he said.

with news from AAP