At the Road Freight NSW 2025 Conference and Awards, Caitlin Barlow, General Manager of JATEC Transport and proud member of Road Freight NSW, delivered a powerful presentation on the Australian Trucking Association’s Inroads Diversity and Inclusion Program.
Barlow began with a stark reminder of the challenges facing the industry: last year alone, more than 26,000 truck driver jobs went unfilled. With an ageing workforce, she noted, the pressure is only set to increase unless the sector embraces new ways of attracting and retaining people.
“The solution isn’t just about running Facebook ads or offering a freebie on the Seek,” she said. “It’s about truly understanding the people we want to bring into this industry, attracting them with workplaces they actually want to be part of, and retaining them once we get them here.”
A roadmap for inclusion
Barlow described Inroads as a roadmap built on three pillars: understanding, attracting, and retaining.
- Understanding means recognising challenges such as discrimination, harassment, and feelings of exclusion.
- Attracting means showing potential recruits that trucking is more than a job – it’s a career and a community.
- Retaining focuses on ensuring workplaces are safe, inclusive, and supportive so employees choose to stay.
Practical learning and legal compliance
The Inroads program is an online, module-based platform with six available courses, covering gender equity, core inclusion, cultural diversity, neurodiversity, inclusive recruitment, and appropriate workplace behaviour.
Barlow emphasised that appropriate workplace behaviour is no longer optional. With new “respect at work” laws, employers have a positive duty to provide safe workplaces free from discrimination and harassment. She cited a case in Victoria where both a company and its director were charged for failing to train staff appropriately, highlighting that Inroads can help businesses meet these obligations.
The program uses film, storytelling, tools, and discussion guides to bring inclusion to life. It is available online 24/7, making it flexible for businesses of all sizes.
From diversity to inclusion
To illustrate the difference between diversity and inclusion, Barlow shared a personal story. At a company barbecue, she proudly offered halal sausages and chocolate Easter bunnies to her diverse team. But six of her Muslim drivers were fasting for Ramadan and could not eat until later that evening.
“I ticked the box – I had a diverse staff,” she admitted. “But I wouldn’t really say that barbecue was very inclusive.”
Had the event been scheduled differently or recognised Ramadan alongside Easter, it could have made everyone feel a stronger sense of belonging. And belonging, she stressed, is critical to productivity, safety, and retention.
Call to action
Barlow closed with a call for industry-wide participation. More than 80 companies have already signed up to Inroads, but its success depends on collective action.
“This program is practical, it’s flexible, and it works – but most importantly, it only works if everybody gets involved,” she said. “The future of our industry, the backbone of Australia, depends on it.”
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