21/02/2019

It’s not about a bus driver shortage, it’s the way bus drivers are treated

“The government already knows the solution to the problem, they talked about it in opposition, it’s simple: scrap the PTOM tendering model that got us in this mess and implement Fair Pay Agreements to lift the standards back to where they should be and to incentivise workers back into what used to be a good industry to work in.”

“Bus drivers already have to drive for 5 ½ hours with no break, work six days a week because they’re hugely underpaid, have to work split shifts that can see them away from home for 14 hours a day plus travel time onto that, and they’re not paid for all those hours, it’s already a complete shambles. The work has detrimental effects on their health. This is all largely due to a tendering system that drives wages down, that encourages companies to treat workers terribly.”

“We don’t see how an industry that is already exploiting New Zealand workers should be allowed to hire migrant workers. The only reason an industry such as this would want to do such a thing is to make it easier to exploit even more workers. They do not deserve the workers they have. To even float the idea is just proof they have absolutely no care for their workers; the problem isn’t as much a shortage of workers, it is much more about the way these workers are treated; hideously.”

ENDS

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