TWU CALLS FOR NHVR INVESTIGATION AFTER MULTI-VEHICLE GOULBURN TRUCK CRASH

Following a tragic incident in Goulburn involving multiple trucks, the TWU is urging the NHVR to fully investigate the supply chains of the companies involved, as its campaign ramps up to lift standards in what is Australia’s deadliest industry.

The TWU is calling for an investigation of the entire supply chains involved, not just companies but the clients they are providing services to-the missing link in many deadly pressures involved in road transport.

In trucking, pressures of underpayments, fatigue, speeding, and overloaded trucks linked to the low-cost contracts demanded by wealthy retailers, manufacturers, and oil companies at the top of the supply chain.

In 2026, 88 people have been killed in truck-related crashes, 23 of them truck drivers.

This year, the TWU has co-ordinated over 200 Enterprise Agreements to expire at once, so that tens of thousands of workers can take action together to lift rock-bottom safety standards in road transport.

TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine said:

“Today we’ve seen another horrific trucking accident in Goulburn, an all-too-common tale in what is Australia’s deadliest industry.

“While the community grapples with the extent of the devastation caused in this incident and how it happened, we know that there are huge and deadly pressures in this industry with dreadful consequences for workers and the entire community.

“The call cannot be clearer: the NHVR must investigate this incident which could have had catastrophic consequences for these drivers and the broader public. They must investigate the whole supply chains involved-not just the drivers and the companies, which have the least power.

“We need to lift standards in trucking, where transport clients are demanding faster and cheaper transport, piling pressure on workers to rush, delay vital truck maintenance and skip rest breaks.

“Every road transport worker has a story about someone who has died in this industry. That should not be happening. With over 200 agreements now expiring around the country, we are pushing this year to dramatically lift standards in road transport so that workers have fair and decent conditions, and aren’t under deadly pressure on our roads. Tens of thousands of workers have made it clear they are willing to use their legal right to take protected industrial action if they need to.”