So much can happen in two weeks: the Transport Women Australia Limited, Wodonga TAFE, Volvo Group Australia initiative – Women Driving Transport Careers has been named a finalist in the Victorian Training Awards – Industry Collaboration Award category, with the winner to be announced on October 16.
We are very proud of this initiative, and I would like to thank those who helped us across the line with our presentation, especially Simon Macaulay from Wodonga TAFE who made it all happen, Jeff Burns from Hanson, Marla Costabeber from Mainfreight and the amazing Rachael Topp from Linfox.
We still have NSW and Victoria in lockdown because of the rising Covid-19 cases, especially in NSW where it has spread to regional areas.
It seems that although they won’t mandate the vaccine, they will make it so difficult to lead a normal life unless you become vaccinated, they are mandating it by stealth.
Until they stop counting the cases and start listing hospitalisation, they will continue to use this scaremongering to frighten vulnerable people. They will continue to control our lives and destroy the economy.
The growing regulations and restrictions on truck drivers and transport companies trying to operate across state borders, striving to find facilities to eat or shower or even have regular comfort stops is ridiculous not to mention the regular invasive Covid tests. Who knows what long-term after-effects these may have?
Many family companies who have always welcomed anyone through their doors have been forced to close their gates due to the spread of the virus to regional areas by those unconcerned for others and their failure to stay in restricted areas.
The harsh restrictions, especially in Victoria where they’re closing playgrounds, parks, and childcare facilities will continue to have severe mental health issues not only in adults but our youth and our children who can’t go to school and now can’t even play outside in parks and playgrounds.
We have health officials preaching to us all day about the spread of the virus, where are the mental health professionals coming out to counteract and telling us what these continual lockdowns and restrictions and not being able to see our families and friends, not being able to interact with other people, what this is doing to our mental health and what the long-term mental health effect of this is going to be?
What is the future looking like for people who have been locked up for months and months? It certainly cannot be a happy and healthy one.
So, in this crazy time more than ever we need to look out for each other and make use the technology we have and check in with our mates and families, make sure that they are OK and that you are OK.
Now we need to stick together and look out for each other, we will come out the other side. It may still be a long hard road to travel, with a few speed humps but we can do it if we stick together and maybe pound some sense into our politicians and stop the crippling lockdowns.
Let’s hope we get to share some happy times together real soon, get these restrictions off our backs and get the party started.