Why did the Truckies Strike fail? It’s a question that needs to be asked of those that lead the strike action.
The truckies strike was a grass roots uprising against big corporate control, and bad government legislation. It had tremendous public support not only across rural & regional Australia, but in the cities.
Not only was that overwhelming support evident from Agmates readers comments but also from readers comments in most major news papers across Australia.
I’ve seen and heard truckies themselves blaming other truckies for not supporting the shutdown, but in the same breath saying that between 45-70% of truck were off the road on the 1st day.
The mainstream media did give the strike action reasonable coverage in the in the week leading up to the strike and during the first 48 hours. That national media coverage would have exploded if the strike had of continued even for a couple of more days.
What a wasted opportunity – Truckies had tremendous public support, huge grass roots support from truckies themselves who felt unrepresented by the Transport Workers Union and peak bodies like The Australian Truckers Association who condemned their actions even though a huge number of their members were participating.
They also had national media attention which would only have grown.
It is disappointing to think that it may have failed because the three groups, all formed by disgruntled owner drivers & drivers, the National Transport Form (NTF), Australian Long Distance Owners & Drivers Association ( ALDODA ) and Mineral & Mine Movers who were all basically looking to right the same wrongs could not even bear to speak to each other let alone work together for the common good.
It tragic that you can have some much public support, grass roots driver support, media attention and yet still manage to self destruct. What a wasted opportunity!
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Update – Monday July the 4th August @10.30am
Andrew Marx writes in todays Brisbanes Courier Mail – “Trucks Protest picks up a load of indifference” is a tremendous example of how the media has had a field day with the disjointed parties involved in the strike.
ALDODA Vice president and QLD organizer Bob Woodyard is quoted as saying -
“We’re just sick and tired of driving 1650kms for $1,540 F***ing dollars”…. “
A lesson in media relations Bob – using the F word when talking to Journalists does not help truckies image with the general public. Bob then goes onto explain -
“What’s happening is the news media gets hold of stuff and they’re falsifying what we are saying and doing”
ALDODA representatives have been there own worst enemy when it comes to handling the mainstream media. If you use inflammatory language – thats what they’ll report – it might be colourful in trying to get your message across, but the media will use it – the prospect of truckie violence will sell many more newspapers than the news of owners & drivers doing it tough.
Then the media does not miss the riff between the two groups ALDODA and the NTF (Mick Pattel) – again Woodyard -
” But Mr Woodyard said he was not co-ordinating activities with the NRTF and he accused Mr Pattel of seeking to promote a political agenda.”
Journalist Anthony Marx now having strung Bob along – really goes for the jugular – First he uses Bob’s last statement to discredit Mick Pattel’s motives -
“Mr Pattel who is national president of the right-wing fringe party promoting limited government, did not return calls seeking comment.”
Then just to finish the demolition job – Marx goes on -
“Perhaps more damaging than the division within the fledgling protest movement has been the rejection of the campaign by the ATA & the TWU”
That leads onto the second half of the article devoted to ATA chairman Trevor Martyn & TWU’s Secretary Tony Sheldon’s spin doctoring.
The often quoted platitude “United we Stand – Divided we Fall” is once again proven to be true.
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Have your say! What do you think went wrong?
Tags: ALDODA, Buny Brown, Mick Pattel, Peter Schuback, Transport
