RECENT research has revealed that almost a third of long-distance truck drivers have used stimulants such as amphetamines due primarily to work pressure.
A survey by the University of NSW (UNSW) showed drivers on stimulants worked an average 71.4 hours a week and those who were not averaged 65 hours.
Professor Ann Williamson of UNSW said use of stimulants was widespread, but higher among drivers who were paid on how productive they were rather than by the hour.
The research was presented to an annual Transport Workers Union conference this week as it today launches a campaign against supermarket chains Coles and Woolworths over driver safety.
TWU national secretary Tony Sheldon said a lopsided number of road deaths involved trucks and this was linked to how drivers were paid.
Sheldon said there was a definite link between remuneration and safety.
In the year to March, heavy vehicles were involved in 275 deaths in Australia, more than 20 per cent of all road deaths. But heavy vehicle registrations were only about 2 per cent of the total.
Sheldon concluded trucking needed rates of pay that allowed enough return to discourage dangerous practices.
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