ownerdriver.com.au AUGUST 2019 33
I
'MGOINGtostartthiscolumnby
weighinginontheHeavyVehicle
NationalLaw(HVNL)review.Asfaras
I’mconcerned,it’sbeginningtolook
likeitmightnotbegoingtosolve
much,oritmightturnouttobe
worsethanwhatwe’vegot.Small
operators,drivers–weneedittobe
simple,easytounderstandandmake
ourworkinglivesbetter.
Yearsago,whenI wasfirstinvolvedwith
theAustralianTruckingAssociation(ATA),
thereweresomeofusthattriedtodo
justthat.Hereweareagain.Evengiving
feedbackisn’teasyforpeoplelikeyouand
me.I’ma bitoldschool,I’mnotgoingto
usea websiteorreada 70pagediscussion
paper.I wantface-to-facemeetings
andpeopletalkingtomethatactually
understandwhatwe’reupagainst,and
readytofixit.
NowI amprobablynottheNational
TransportCommission’s(NTC)biggest
fan,andsomeofthatisbecauseI don’t
seepeoplegettingouttoindustryenough
andtalkingtous.AtourLivestock&Rural
TransportersAssociationofVictoria
(LRTAV)conference,whichishappening
asthiseditionhitsthetable,wehaveNTC
repscomingtohearwhatweneedand
want.Butit’sgottomakeitacrossthe
divideofoperatortobureaucrat.
I knowthattherearepeoplewhowant
tohelpandmakeitbetter,buthowcan
theyfullyunderstandwithoutgettingina
truckwithus?Howdowemakethepollies
orwhoeverneedstoapprovespendingour
taxpayerdollarsrealisetheyneedtofigure
outa waytoexperienceitforthemselvesto
fullygethowharditwillbetofixproperly.
First-hand experience
OPERATOR FEEDBACK
There are positives, however. Sharon
Middleton from the South Australian Road
Transport Association (SARTA) is on the
expert panel and I am pretty glad to have
a person that is driving B-doubles across
the paddock helping us. I have a lot of
respect for Louise Bilato and Gary Mahon
as well, both passionate and outspoken.
But is it enough?
What we need is the reviewers visiting
operators across the country. We need
face to face chances to contribute. Help
operators go along to give their feedback- how are good people like you and me,
and blokes like Rod Hannifey, going to
speak out without some funding to make
up for lost hours of work or business?
Associations are there, but once again, the
people experiencing the system are the
drivers and operators, and they will be
living with the changes.
These real people are the ones waiting
in queues, being told to hurry up or slow
down, using badly maintained loading
facilities, packing a bag and sleeping in
a truck for a week or more. No report is
going to represent this accurately; no ED
is going to explain it fully because they
haven’t lived it. ATA CEO Ben Maguire’s
done a bit in Western Australia, but that’s
not the east coast and he’s industry. We
need those that will be writing the laws
and enforcing them out there to see if they
can walk the talk.
Let’s get enforcement, pollies, regulators
and the NTC out in a truck, travel for a
few weeks, get a taste of the problems we
face and the attitudes we experience from
enforcement and the conditions we put
up with. Get them in trucks stuck waiting
at DCs for hours or days to unload or load.
Using unmaintained loading ramps with
no access gates. Get them using truck
washes with no showers. Have them woken
up while resting to have work diaries
checked. Then write the laws after all that.THIRD WORLD CONDITIONS
It’s pretty basic stuff. A while ago, the
LRTAV did a story about toilets and
showers, and it’s the most basic of human
needs that often don’t meet third world
standards. I did a 1,300km trip into NSW
a while back and I was f lat out finding a
toilet where you can even park a truck or
you would let your partner into. We have
our members washing trucks in freezing
conditions, getting changed out in the
open, no shower or toilets. It’s pathetic. Do
offices that our bureaucrats work in have
toilets? Of course they bloody do.
Something I am pretty proud of is the
beginning stages of a Ramps Standard.
A couple of us are working with Standards
Australia, as well as the supply chain
on this issue. Sadly, it took a Coroner’s
inquest and a man to lose his life to
start the process, but the ultimate goal
is safety for anyone that uses these types
of equipment.
After all, this is what it’s really about;
people making it home safely, not
hurting themselves or others and
keeping their jobs and businesses
viable. This HVNL review could really
help us if it’s done right.
Lastly, I encourage you to think about
joining an association. LRTAV is having its
annual conference on August 16 and 17 in
Bendigo. We aren’t bureaucrats; we work
together and try to fix things. Whether
it’s helping members give feedback to the
NTC or fixing toilets or getting an eff luent
dump built (one day!) or powerlines
checked, it’s about working together
to make things improve. We can’t fix
everything but there is a great feeling to
have other people like you working on the
same problems.
There are good grass roots associations- think about it. It’s also a chance to meet
people, share issues and socialise. There is
moretolifethanwork,theytellme!
JOHNBEER,withfour
decadesasanowner-
operatorunderhisbelt,is
currentlyvicepresident
of theALRTAandthe
LRTAV.Inaddition,John
isa pastpresidentand
lifememberofboth
associations.Hewasthe
firstrecipient( 2015 )ofthe
ALRTAMcIverAwardfor
OutstandingContribution
to the LivestockandRural
TransportIndustry,and
in 201 6 wasa finalist
inthe ATAAwardsfor
OutstandingContribution
to the AustralianTrucking
Industry.Johnsatonthe
ATACouncilasthe owner-
driverrepresentativefrom
2017 to 2019.LIVESTOCK & RURAL John Beer
Want to know what it’s like to work in sub-standard
conditions? Try long haul trucking
"Do offices that
our bureaucrats work
in have toilets?"