PROTEST PLIGHT
LUTON AIRPORT ADDISON LEE DRIVERS PROTEST AT ‘SWEATSHOP CONDITIONS’ AND 35% COMMISSION
Minicab drivers at Luton Airport brav- ed the cold weather on 5 February to protest against pay and working condi- tions at Addison Lee (AL). Luton Today reports that the pro- testers, represented by the Independent Workers Union of Great
Britain
(IWGB), say their take home pay falls below minimum wage. Analysis by the United Private Hire Drivers
(UPHD)
shows AL drivers often work over 70
hours per week, earning little more than £1,000, but after £270 in vehicle rent and 35% com- mission by AL are deducted,
along
with costs such as fuel, drivers take home around £225 per week in pay. Sohail Choudhary, Chair of the Luton UPHD branch, said: “Drivers such as myself working for AL at Luton Airport have been reduced to working in sweat- shop conditions and we
can barely scrape by. It is a dis-
grace how AL treat their workers, and it is a disgrace that Luton BC allow them to continue to do so. “The council must resolve their clear conflict of interest as
owner of Luton Air- port,
the ultimate benefiting
from a lucrative con- tract that gives AL exclusive rights to operate at the air- port, while having a responsibility as a licensing authority to ensure drivers like myself are not mis- treated.”
Minicab drivers are also protesting ag- ainst the “indignity” of their treatment by AL, with claims of workplace bully- ing. The majority Muslim workforce is required to make their daily prayers outside on the tar- mac by the taxi rank. The IWGB is calling for AL to: • Reduce commis- sion to 20% from current levels re- cently increased to 35%
• Withdraw vehicle rental price in-
crease of £20pw
• Pay drivers for time they spend taking AL vehicles for maintenance and inspections
• End workplace bullying now ‘rife’ at Luton Airport
• Provide a suitable place of worship for drivers
• Respect the legal worker rights of drivers as con- firmed by the Employment Tri- bunal in 2017
In response to these claims, an Addison Lee
spokesman said: “We are proud
HUGE TAXI DRIVER PROTEST BRINGS PLYMOUTH CITY CENTRE TO A STANDSTILL
Dozens of taxi
drivers flooded the streets of Plymouth for a second time, in protest over
the
proposed increases in the cost of their licences. Drivers honked their horns in the city centre before head- ing towards the Plymouth
City
Council’s building. Taxi drivers had also caused a commotion the previous day, Sunday 27 January, when they drove en masse around the city centre. PlymouthLive reports that for hackney drivers,
it’s pro-
posed that a one- year licence jumps from £210 to £324 and a one-year driv- er’s licence goes from £112 to £165. A one-year PHV
20
Taxi drivers want a “fair deal”
licence is to jump from £117 to £170 with a one-year PHV driver’s licence going from £82 to £120. But cabbies then united to stage a ‘peaceful protest’ over the proposed increases - although Plymouth
City
Council says the fee hike is still at at con- sultation phase.
A Plymouth City Council spokesman said: “We operate two separate bank accounts for the taxi trade, one for hack- ney carriage and one for private hire. Both
of these
accounts are funded by the trade so as not to burden the council tax payer. “We have reviewed both accounts and are proposing ad- justing the fees to ensure the full costs of running the ser- vice are recouped. “Additional expendi- ture this year in- cludes
increased
legal costs associat- ed with HC licence review committee hearings, appeals and prosecutions. “If we do not increase the fees, the HC taxi reserve
account is expected to be in the red by £92k. We have opted to narrow the gap over five years, rather than three or one year to reduce the impact raising the fees will have on drivers in the future. “The proposed rise in fees is still in the consultation phase. “The rises have been advertised and the taxi trade will have an opportunity to give us their feed- back. The responses will be published as part of the commit- tee report to be heard at the next available Taxi Li- censing Committee meeting. “At that point we will either continue with the fee propos- als, or
look at
of our mutually ben- eficial arrangement with our Luton driv- er partners and want them to earn a decent living. “As a result of our ongoing investment in our Luton opera- tions since 2016, average Luton driv- er pay increased by 11.6% in 2018, year on year. “To that end, the recent changes in our Luton driver partner deal includ- ed increases in fares to ensure driver income wasn’t im- pacted.”
Several of the taxi drivers involved in the protest
something more palatable to the trade.” Jason says his licence is set to increase by 95 per cent if it goes ahead. The private hire driver said: “We are all protesting this extreme rise.
It’s
hard to make a liv- ing as it is. We want
them [the council] to know we are sticking together. We are being forced to make a stand. A 95 per cent rise is unfathomable. “There have been quite a few taxi drivers who have said they aren’t going to renew [their licences].”
MARCH 2019
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