A country singer and prominent figure in the trucking community says that now is not the time for drivers to voice their grievances with a driver shutdown.
Truck driver and musician Tony Justice recently weighed in on social media rumblings of a driver shutdown on August 31 in support of a similar movement among Australian truck drivers and against possible COVID-19 vaccine mandates from U.S. employers.
Justice took to social media to point out that the people of Louisiana will be in desperate need of truckers to bring food, fuel, and other supplies after the devastation wrought by Hurricane Ida.
On Sunday, Justice wrote:
Truckers don’t shut down when our fellow Americans need us the most. THEY STAND UP and get the job done to make sure all those families impacted by a natural disaster have what they need to survive and rebuild…. Many of those impacted are our Brothers and Sisters of the highway and there family… We put our issues to the side and deliver the medical supplies needed, the food and water and ice, gasoline, electrical wiring and poles, chainsaws and chain saw oil needed to help restore power, generators to hold those impacted over till it is. We are no different than the Army, Navy Air Force and Marines when it comes to that. . We are there when you need us most. And thats what makes me the proudest about being a trucker!!! Ya… I get tired of the Government over regulating us, but that beef is between us truckers and the Government. Not our fellow Americans in need!!!
The post has been liked more than 2000 times in less than 24 hours. Many commenters supported Justice’s message, while others argue that a shutdown is necessary to raise awareness about issues like vaccine requirements, freight rates, and the treatment of members of the trucking industry by the public at large.
Last week, the Biden administration asked private employers to require COVID-19 vaccinations for workers after the FDA fully approved the Pfizer vaccine. Some of the country’s largest employers, including Walmart, Walt Disney, Google, Facebook, and Uber have placed vaccine requirements in place for some workers, but so far, the trucking industry has not seen any major push to force truckers to get vaccinated.