High mobility defines road transport. Truck drivers operate across long distances, frequently crossing borders and jurisdictions, and work across highways, ports, warehouses and customer sites. The ILO Guidelines on the promotion of decent work and road safety in the transport sector recognise that this creates significant gaps in the protection and enforcement of labour standards.
High mobility limits access to basic rights and protections, including safe rest and sanitation facilities, healthcare and effective labour inspection. Extended periods away from home increase fatigue, social isolation and exposure to unsafe conditions. Mobile work also makes it difficult for drivers to access grievance mechanisms or engage with trade unions, weakening their ability to report abuses or seek remedy.
Cross-border operations increase vulnerability, particularly for migrant drivers facing language barriers, discrimination and differing legal protections. The ILO Guidelines highlight that these systemic conditions obscure accountability and allow unsafe and exploitative practices to persist undetected.
High mobility is not just an operational characteristic but a systemic risk that undermines fair pay, decent work, safety and effective enforcement of labour rights in road transport supply chains.
For more on high mobility work see the Risks Across Transport guidance.