Australian Truck Drivers strike over closure of construction industry

An estimated 100 truck drivers drove in a convoy with horns blaring across Sydney for nearly two hours on Saturday afternoon to protest the NSW government’s decision to close the construction industry for two weeks as part of a COVID-19 lockdown, Australia local news reported.

But the frustrated truckers have other griefs as Businessinsider Australia reported:

Negotiations with the management broke down after it tried to push a new “substandard” workplace agreement that the union claims would slash pay, undermine job security and outsource roles.

The Transport Workers Union (TWU) which represents the workers told Business Insider Australia that as a result it had lodged a protected action ballot with the Fair Work Commission (FWC). The ballot lays the groundwork for industrial action, with strikes sufficient to “cripple food and fuel supplies across Australia.”