PROTEST PLIGHT BIRMINGHAM DRIVERS’ STRIKE THREAT
Private hire drivers in Birmingham are threat- ening to strike if council bosses fail to act on myriad concerns they have over their working conditions. More than 100 drivers held a peaceful protest outside the city centre’s Millennium Point on October 9th over claims they were being “mistreated and undermined” by Birm- ingham City Council. They all signed a peti- tion calling on the council to replace per- manent licence stickers they must put on their cars with a ver- sion that can be removed at times when the drivers are not working. The peti- tion was put before the council’s next full cabi- net meeting along with
The protest, fronted by spokesman Tanveer Choudhry
a list of other worries the drivers claim to have, including hikes in licence fees and issues over enforce- ment officers carrying out stop-checks on vehicles during peak working times on Fri- day and Saturday
nights. Tanveer Choudhry, spokesman for the drivers, told the Birm- ingham Mail: “Around two years ago a pri- vate hire meeting was supposed to take place between the drivers and the coun-
cil, but was cancelled due to over 3,000 driv- ers turning up and the venue could only hold 500 people.
“The drivers were told that the meeting would be rescheduled but it never was.” Mr Choudhry, a former
councillor for the city’s Springfield ward and a taxi driver, added: “These issues haven’t gone away. They understand that cars must be checked by the council to ensure they are safe for the public to use, but they question why these checks are done on the busiest periods of their working weeks. “The licence stickers on their cars damage the vehicles if they are removed, and when they are trying to enjoy time off with their fam- ily they are being constantly asked about their work and if they can take passen- gers to places.
“Licence fees are increasing at a time when they are already struggling following a
recession, which has left them with fewer customers and greater costs due to higher fuel prices.
“None of them wants to strike but if their concerns are not addressed they feel they have no other choice.”
Cllr Ayoub Khan, the council’s cabinet member for local serv- ices and community safety, who was at the protest, said the coun- cil regularly met with various taxi associa- tions in the city to address issues.
“I appreciate that these drivers have multiple issues and anxieties and I will be asking the council to investigate these as a matter of urgency,” he added.
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0845 269 6407 PAGE 32 PHTM NOVEMBER 2011
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