The Case for ‘Safe Rates’
Keeping Truckies Out of Serious Harm’s Way
It was an urgent issue in 2022, when we were coming out of troubled Covid times. First Union launched a campaign for “Safe Rates” for truck drivers – a system of sustainable wages aimed at easing the pressure to speed, overload and drive while tired.
Higher pay leads to more truckies on the road, and less accidents. So the argument goes.
At the time, there was an urgent shortage of drivers. Industry leaders sent an open letter to the government, estimating the number of unfilled truck driver positions at 8000. Road freight advocacy group Transporting NZ thought it was more like 2400.Whichever was the right figure, it’s a big one – for a sector that employs some 50,000 people.
So how can the truckie shortage, that’s plagued the industry for a quarter century, be resolved? Make changes so that women join the workforce? Bring in more qualified immigrant drivers? Encourage young people to join a training programme? Install high-tech solutions to keep the drivers more safe, when they have hectic schedules?
Australia: Senate Decision in February
Fast forward to 2024, and we have a new government settling in. And First Union’s Safe Rates campaign has been relaunched. The push is to mirror what’s happening in Australia – which is moving toward implementing country-wide Safe Rates to lift standards in the trucking industry.
A recent comprehensive Newsroom article argues the point very clearly. A Safe Rates system is working its way through the Australian parliament, with a bill that would enable the Fair Work Commission to set minimum standards.
Australia Transport Workers’ Union assistant secretary Nick McIntosh said it was a difficult problem to solve because it involved the entire supply chain.
“The real issue for transport workers is that it’s not really their direct employer or principal contractor that’s in charge of the standards that they work on. [Industry are] the ones that really set the standards, and they’re the ones that will often engage in practices of undercutting.”
He said the safe rates system would prevent that from happening.
“What the government’s done here is to say, … there’ll be cost recovery and people can have some hope that there’s going to be sustainable standards in place, and they’re not going to have to take risks and drive too long or skip maintenance or things like that just to pay the bills. If it passes the senate, then that will certainly be the gold standard law of the land.”
New Zealand: Follow Suit?
First Union says that a Safe Rates system legislates a baseline rate for driver wages. And that has already resulted in fewer road crashes – in other countries like South Korea.
Anita Rosentreter, from the country’s largest truckies union, explains in the Newsroom article how truck drivers – who often work as independent contractors – are not protected under employment laws, and can be forced to work for less than the minimum wage. The unregulated competitive tendering in the trucking industry then contributes to unsafe driving behavior.
“They get paid per run, as opposed to an hourly rate. And there are also sometimes financial penalties if they miss deadlines and stuff like that so that really puts the pressure on to get the work done fast.”
Combine this with the driver shortage that’s been around since the early 2000s – especially in Auckland and other big cities – and the need for speed becomes apparent.
The Issue of Finding more Drivers
Wages have gone up over the last few years. But a shortage remains. So other measures are required as well. Like… Could immigration provide the answer?
In 2022, the Waste Management Industry Forum, the Bus and Coach Association, and National Road Carriers wrote an Open Letter to the Immigration Minister, asking to make it easier for immigrants to take on jobs.
“We cannot overstate the degree of strain [the shortage of drivers] is placing on the businesses we represent. It is resulting in unsustainable increases in cost, uncertainty and stress, and businesses are being stretched to breaking point. What is required immediately are changes to immigration settings that allow more skilled drivers to enter the country, more quickly.”
Nick Leggett from Transporting NZ does not quite agree though. He says a survey of transport operators in 2020 found 80 percent had never employed anyone who had come into the country on a migrant visa.
“The elephant in the room in the immigration debate is that more of the industry need to be opening their doors to a trainee.” Nick Leggett Transporting NZ
The industry apprenticeship programme Te Ara ki Tua - Road to Success – a career pathway for people who want to become a truck driver – has not quite met high expectations. Leggett says that the focus needs to be on this programme, and that it needs employers to come to the party and take on newbie drivers. He also wants a focus on getting women into the industry.
“We need to adopt a structured way of bringing in new talent,” Leggett says. “The average age of a truck driver is 54, and 90 percent of them are male. If 90 percent of our workforce is 50 percent of our population, perhaps we need to go hunting in places we have not previously sought staff. And as an industry we need to change our structure to adapt to the needs of women drivers.”
Other Solutions – Keeping Truckies Safe
The truck drivers shortage is forcing a search for both long and short term solutions to the way the industry moves products around. Health and Safety is a key concern. The Transport, Postal and Warehousing sector has one of the highest fatality rates, along with Recreation (e.g. White Island) and Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing.
Accidents and serious harm not only take truckies temporarily out of the workforce, but would also stop youngsters and women from choosing trucking as a valid career option.
Technology solutions have their limitations. Driver-facing cameras, used to keep drivers awake and prevent accidents, are relatively unpopular. Many see it as an invasion of privacy.
Comprehensive systems like Inviol are probably not that suitable for the large number of small operators in the industry. But out of around 6000 road transport companies in New Zealand, some 1200 have 10 employees or more. And since Inviol is a subscription-based system with monthly payments, there are no initial set-up costs. Pay-as-you-go delivers a healthy ROI, almost from Day One.
Inviol customers like Countdown, Vulcan Steel and Placemakers have dramatically reduced their serious harm rates – almost overnight.
There are things that can be done, to keep the trucks on the road and truckies moving goods to the customer – with less injuries and fatalities. Talk to us, to see how we can help.
The Example Across the Ditch
In the meantime, let’s keep an eye on Australia and their Safe Rates legislation. It will be interesting to see how it goes, and whether it can keep our drivers safer. The state of New South Wales has run something similar for a long time, and that has produced some really promising evidence already.
Let’s see if Australia’s upcoming new federal system is something for New Zealand to copy and implement as well.
Recommended Reads
Inviol can help with Truck and Warehouse solutions. Other solution providers have other industry solutions. Make a start, and check out what you can do? Our New Zealand Herald article.