A distressing situation is unfolding at a guarded truck parking lot in Venlo.
Four truck drivers from Central Asia have been protesting for weeks against their employers, large Lithuanian transport companies that are depriving them of their promised wages and exposing them to exploitation. The FNV trade union is seriously concerned about their safety and speaks of gross human rights violations.
The drivers, who work for Lithuanian transport giants Baltic Transline, Hegelmann and Hoptrans, mainly drive in Western Europe. Instead of a stable job and a fair wage, they find themselves in a situation of permanent uncertainty. They have been pressured to commit tachograph fraud and lie to police officers during checks. In addition, they are intimidated and confronted with threats, such as withholding of their wages or dismissal.
The situation escalated when the drivers complained and joined a colleague who had already been helped by the police. They sought safety in the guarded parking lot in Venlo, but they did not feel comfortable there either. Their contracts have now been terminated and their employers are threatening legal action in Lithuania. The trucks in which they slept have been deliberately disabled, leaving the drivers without electricity and heating. To protect themselves against the cold, they use gas burners.
The drivers in Venlo hope that the pressure on their employers will increase and that they will finally get what they are entitled to: their wages, the necessary documents and a safe return home. In the meantime, they continue to stand their ground in the parking lot, despite the cold and the intimidation.
The FNV supports the drivers' struggle and calls on the buyers of the Lithuanian transport companies to take responsibility. Many of these customers are large European companies, including supermarket chains and car manufacturers. According to European law, they are obliged to intervene if there are human rights violations within their supply chain.
A recent ruling by the Dutch Labour Inspectorate confirms that this case involves exploitation. Earlier, a driver from Uzbekistan, also employed by Baltic Transline, was recognised as a victim of human trafficking through the intervention of the FNV. This underlines the seriousness of the situation and the structural problems in the sector.
structural abuses
The FNV emphasizes that this not an isolated incident is, but is symbolic of wider abuses in the European transport sector. Despite clear rules, rogue transport companies continue to exploit workers, often with the certainty that they will not be tackled. The union warns that many East and Central Asian drivers in Europe work under similar conditions and that enforcement is lacking.
“This is not an exception, but a pattern,” said a spokesperson for the FNV. “Employers get away with it time and time again, because control mechanisms fail and customers turn a blind eye to these practices.”
