Freight operators crossing the Queensland border must have had at least one COVID vaccine, according to new, stronger border rules coming into place today.

This new measure is causing havoc for truck drivers, putting further strain on the supply chain, according to the head of Road Freight New South Wales Simon O’Hara

Thousands of truck drivers are currently on strike across Australia as they fight for better conditions.

Some 7,000 Toll drivers have walked out of their jobs as they demand a pay rise.

Toll is offering a two per cent increase for the next two years and a $1,000 sign-on bonus after the workers agreed to forgo a pay rise last year due to COVID-19.

The Transport Workers Union (TWU) is calling for a three per cent pay rise and job security on behalf of the workers.

TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine says operators are doing whatever they can to fight for safe jobs.

Toll Group failed to provide a comment before this industry news update was released.

Gender equality in the professional world has stalled over the past year, with only one woman promoted to the role out of 25 appointments at Australia’s largest companies.

Only six per cent of the top ASX 300 companies have females as CEOs.
It’s clear that, the underrepresentation of women in executive team line roles must be improved.

Australian women are the most educated in the world, yet their talent is underutilized.

The recently-launched 2021 Chief Executive Senior Executive Census shows women make up a quarter of roles in executive leadership teams – a figure that has stalled in recent years.

The report reveals women are more often employed in senior functional roles such as HR, Corporate Affairs, marketing, sales and legal – which are not traditional CEO pathways.

It’s estimated it’ll take 65 years before women make up 40 per cent of line roles in executive leadership roles, according to the last five-year census trends.

Whilst the transport and logistics industry has been described as a non-traditional employment path for women, the number of females is slowly rising.

Some 21 per cent of women represent positions in the transport, postal and warehousing industry.

The Northern Territory Road Transport Association (NTRTA) wants rapid COVID testing at state borders, calling for antigen testing kits to be provided to drivers.

NTRTA Chief Executive Officer Louise Bilato says it takes too long for drivers to receive COVID results in between the three tests they undertake each week.

Drivers currently need to provide proof of a negative rapid test result that is no older than 72 hours, with some of the results not back within that timeframe.

As the global logistics industry moves towards automation, India is striving to become the drone hub on the world platform by 2030.

The Drone Federation of India (DFI) has very recently notified the National Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) policy framework for a seamless operation of drones in the airspace. So, how is the Indian government turning heads with its liberalised drone policy and bridging the gaps in on-ground logistical issues?

We get you an exclusive interview of the CEO and Founder of Tech Eagle- a drone delivery company that has completed Asia’s first drone-based vaccine delivery as part of the Medicine from the Sky project by the Telangana Government, World Economic Forum, NITI Aayog & Apollo Hospitals.

A detailed report by our India Correspondent Sheuly Ghosh.`

Traditionally, the supply chain has been a Cinderella sector; poorly understood, underfunded, and seen by many as an unappealing second-tier career option.

Improvements in robotics, digitization and communication software have changed what was once an undeniably difficult work environment.

While the pandemic has increased awareness and respect for the industry, it’s also created additional challenges for recruitment as well as for onboarding new staff and upskilling the current workforce.

Recent data by Deakin University’s Centre for Supply Chain and Logistics and Wayfinder has found skills shortage in truck driving, robotics and data analytics.

Here’s what the centre’s researcher Roberto Perez-Franco, has got to say.

Leading up to the WA-ASEAN 2022 Summit, Import Export TV looks at trade between Thailand and Australia and what impact COVID-19 has had on the two countries.

As a top 10 trading partner, Thailand continues to be an important market for Australia.

We chat with the Trade Commissioner of Thai Trade Centre Wanasri Jotikabukkana about what initiatives are currently in place to engage further in trade growth.

We also talk to a Thai Australian meat exporter Akapol Srisangfa from Perth about trade challenges.

Import Export TV is a proud media partner of the summit; helping promote and celebrate the hybrid event.

Held on March 20-22, the summit celebrates Australia-ASEAN and Australia-APAC business relations.

From repositioning containers, providing empty imported boxes to exporters and 100% rebate scheme on rail tariff, converting containerised cargo into breakbulk cargo, envisioning a container manufacturing unit in India and owning a couple of shipping lines, the stakeholders of the Indian maritime sector and the Indian government have been trying their best to stay afloat the container crunch that snowballed into lack of space in a container carrying vessels.

The Indian exporters have been reeling under the stress of high freight rates. The cost of transporting a container from India to any of the major global ports has increased by almost 800% between March of 2020 and October 2021. The Covid-19 pandemic has caused ships at the world's biggest ports like Los Angeles/Long Beach to take twice the time to turn around as before the pandemic.

While Asian ports have started to decongest, the box crisis is here to remain for a long haul. Take a listen to Import Export TV's India Correspondent Sheuly Ghosh as she explains the current situation of India's box crisis along with exclusive insights from Federation of Indian Exporters Organisation (FIEO) Director-General Dr. Ajay Sahai and CSLA-India, Executive Director Sunil Vaswani.