The Tasmanian Greens today again called on Forestry Tasmania and Forestry Minister Bryan Green to stop exploiting forest contractors over the preparation of whole logs for export to China.
Greens Forests spokesperson Kim Booth MP said Forestry Tasmania are paying a pittance to forest contractors for segregating, cutting to specified lengths, gangnail endplating and painting tiny peeler logs for China, and are then threatening contractors with the removal of their entire contracts if they complain about the situation.
Mr Booth also queried how much money Forestry Tasmania is actually making from these whole log exports given that it has been uneconomic to export wood products from Tasmania for some time, and called on Forestry Tasmania to reveal whether they are receiving a fair return, including a commercial level of profit, for the exported logs.
“Logging contractors are furious that Forestry Tasmania is paying a pittance for the segregation and preparation of whole logs for export to China, and then threatening any contractor who rightfully points out that they are working for less than nothing on those logs,” said Mr Booth.
“Because these export logs are tiny it takes sometimes up to 300 logs to make up a truckload, and every one of those logs must be segregated, cut to length, endplated and painted, for the appalling return to the contractors of $2.50 per tonne. This is akin to slave labour, and it must stop.”
“Forestry contractors already face financial ruin directly as a result of harsh and oppressive contracts and are now forced to spend hours of extra time and money to earn a lousy $100 extra per forty tonne load.”
“It is about time some of Forestry Tasmania’s desk jockeys came out into the real world and tested how long they could survive on these oppressive rates.”
“Forestry Tasmania’s miserly behaviour towards the forest contractors makes it more than apparent that they are receiving very little, if any, profit at all from the export of these logs.”
“Forestry Minister Bryan Green, or Forestry Tasmania themselves, must step in and ensure that forest contractors receive a fair rate of pay for the work they are carrying out, as well as investigating reports from contractors that Forestry Tasmania is threatening them with the loss of their entire contracts if they complain about the pittance they are receiving for export log preparation,” said Mr Booth.
Example of prepared export logs for China, (diameter correct, length docked for transportation to press conference), gangnail-plated and end-painted, photo taken 12 August 2010 by Amy Tyler
