Truck drivers hauling goods across the nation are calling on large retailers, manufacturers and mining companies to increase fuel levies, or else fall of a debt cliff.
Unions and transport employers are at the Fair Work Commission in Sydney arguing large businesses should be compelled to calculate fuel prices on a weekly, rather than a monthly, basis.
The application calls for extra costs as a result of the different calculation method to be covered by clients, and passed down through the supply chain.
"If we don't get this right, then the road transport industry will grind to a halt," Transport Workers' Union secretary Michael Kaine told reporters on Wednesday.
"Road transport is the backbone of the Australian economy, and we must attend to this present existential crisis."
The emergency application comes after Workplace Relations Minister Amanda Rishworth declared the commission could issue an order within a short time frame to deal with the trucking industry's concerns.
Mr Kaine blamed multinational giant Amazon and shopping behemoth Aldi for not alleviating the financial pain of truck drivers, among others.
"Those companies have been jacking up prices using the war as a pretext," he said.
"Stop shirking responsibility, open the purse strings and make sure you are funding those that make sure that Australia is connected."
Energy Minister Chris Bowen said demand for diesel and other fuels was 30 per cent higher over Easter compared to the same period in 2025.
Some 221 petrol stations are without diesel out of 7940 nationwide, which Mr Bowen said showed "petrol and diesel is going out the door at a rapid rate, but also coming in the door".
"More day to day transactions, which predominates in regional Australia, hasn't been working as well," he noted.
Filling up the tank for truck driver Zack O'Brien, 38, has more than doubled from $300 a week to about $700 in March and April.
The fuel excise has been a relief but is not sustainable in a volatile oil market with the price per litre for diesel skyrocketing from $1.70 per litre to more than $3.
"Drivers can't afford to have a day off," he said.
"We're mum and dad operators. If this (Fair Work orders) doesn't happen for us, the wheels will stop turning and the whole industry will fall over."
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