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A Waikato trucking company and 21 of its drivers have been prosecuted for exceeding working hours.
The National Distribution Union says this highlights an issue the union has been trying to get looked at for some time.
File photo not related to prosecution
NDU Transport and Logistics Sector Secretary Karl Andersen says there’s no sign of widespread abuse of driving regulation among waged drivers but there are owner drivers being pushed into signing up to contracts that demand outputs that cannot be met without compromising their health and safety and the lives of other road users.
“These drivers frequently have to drive too fast, work too many hours, and neglect vehicle maintenance, simply to make ends meet.
“We totally agree with the New Zealand Transport Agency when it the compares the effects of extreme fatigue to that of drunk driving.
“Large trucks can become instruments of death and destruction on our roads if their drivers are tired, stressed and overworked.”
Mr Andersen says the NDU would like an official inquiry into whether there is a link between truck driver remuneration and payment methods and safety outcomes.
9 Comments
Karl Andersen is obviously got his head in the sand…
Show me a driver that doesn’t doctor his logbook and I will show you a liar…
maybe if we didn’t consume so much shit, there wouldn’t be a need for so many trucks on the road.
or maybe someone should pull finger and get more freight on rail….
build new roads, but don’t allow truckies a decent wage or proper driving times like other countries.
can’t have it both ways national, so sort your shit out.
Don’t wish to adopt a parental tone but watch the swearing please. LOL
huh? how would trucking be any different under any other party…trucks have an important part to play in the distribution of goods…rail isn’t feasible for all truck routes or for all goods…I love rail….but I am realistic.
When I was driving I was well paid…..anymore than 13 hours in a day is just silly…but some of the rest rules are a bit stupid…
The rest rules are to protect the truck driver & other road users. I have a Class 2 licence & have never cheated in my logbook.
Sure….
There would have been a more meaningful conversation on this subject if the article had contained the full facts. These guys weren’t linehaul drivers, they were agricultural contractors doing seasonal work such as haymaking. And it wasn’t the actual time driving that was taken into account when assessing their hours, it was also time in the workshop doing maintenance on other machinery, and downtime in the paddocks. As I understand it, it was this extra time, which they did include in their logbooks, which was then taken into account when assessing when they should have taken their 24 break at the end of 70 hours.
I meant to say that the drivers did not include the extra time in their logbooks.
Actually, if drivers followed the law to the letter, about all they could legally do on their days off, would be to sit in the lounge and watch tv.
Evan, yes, you’re right on what they could do on their days off. Which is the whole bleeding point: they’re days off. Rest days. Days to recharge the body and mind, not days to do more work. And there’s actually a whole lot more that they could do that’s not considered to be duty time but which is just as tiring as working - doing a long-distance personal drive, for example.
The duty hours rules are there for a reason.