Taxi driver protest

Overheal

The business I was hired into over the summer ran a U-Haul department which I was brought on to run. When the dept. was first opened we were one of 3 in the zipcode and we brought in perhaps $900/wk Net which was enough money to keep the department self sufficient and siphon money into the primary business.

But the regional manager for U-Haul didn't stop there. Its U-Haul policy basically, to open as many locations as possible. By the time we had to shut down the business, we were 1 of 12 locations in the area and making just over $300/wk which was far below balance.

Short end of the story is In a market like U-Haul or the Taxi industry - where each unit is in business for themselves and each one is supplying a homogenous product - it is very easy for over-saturation to become an issue. In a completely open market for taxi's for example, you would begin to see record turnover - new drivers would come in, and squeeze out older drivers. Like a little motorized legion of half baked mcdonalds employees. Instead of having career drivers who become more experienced and more reputable, you get left with the Shady F*cker of the Week.

Im not sure that freezing licensing is the solution but definitely I would support more barriers to entry into the taxi industry to keep volume relatively sustainable. The last thing I would want to see is some scumlord be able to get a taxi license, and by next week be feeling up some passed out girl in his passenger seat, or something like that.

blahblah06

koolkid wrote: »

Still you managed to dodge all the questions yet again.
Doing an unskilled job & making no money (as ye keep saying) is not making something of yourself. How could it be.

my god you nut job. what are you talking about. were did i say we make no money ? read the bloody replys ffs

Why would any sane person stay running a business where they are losing money? WHO SAYS WERE LOOSING MONEY OVERALL?

also please show me were I said were not making money numerous of times as you say

John Mason

blahblah06 wrote: »

my god you nut job. what are you talking about. were did i say we make no money ? read the bloody replys ffs

Why would any sane person stay running a business where they are losing money? WHO SAYS WERE LOOSING MONEY OVERALL?

also please show me were I said were not making money numerous of times as you say

so if you are making money, what was the point of the protest?

Taxipete29

koolkid wrote: »

So you have no proof?? Don't you think then its you who needs to grow up & stop making wild accusations.



If these are the only drivers you wish to get rid of then why not take action & report them to the revelent authorities insted of trowing your toys out of your prams every time things are bad.
Every one is finding it hard. Everyones wages are down. So more than likely you will find more people working 2 jobs (or maybe 3) to make ends meet. They are putting in the hours to make a few euro to support themselves & their familys, fair play to them. Maybe the lazy taxi drivers could learn a thing or 2 from some real workers.

Where exactly did I throw my toys out of the pram. I wasnt protesting I was working, read my earlier post.

You asked about making it illegal to work 2 jobs and I merely told you what was going on. You then proceeded to babble on about proof and accusations.

Get it right, I am not defending taxi drivers. I am not complaining about my earnings and I am not looking to get rid of every part-timer.

You look down your nose at taxi drivers, its obvious from your posts. What you makes you so special that you have the right to look down your nose at anyone.??

Taxipete29

gdael wrote: »

Innocent until proven guilty. I hear the same crap about landlords not paying their tax all the time, with no evidence at all.

In case you dont realize it they are only saying they are going after them to keep the rest of the taxi drivers quiet. You protested, you got something. Thats all you're going to get Happy days for all.
There is no way in hell you can stop people from taking a second job. Especially a job that anyone at all can do.

Do you think they could spot them all in about 10 seconds by linking the taxi license database and the revenue database.
Its a simple job to do. Government 1 Taxi drivers 0 ... as usual.

Are you actually stupid, did you not read my earlier post.

I DIDNT PROTEST.

Nobody is trying to stop people taking a 2nd job, but there are plenty of jobs, many in the public and semi-state sector that dont allow it. Its against the terms of employment.

I said it earlier if your job permits it and you pay tax then by all means go out and earn a few extra quid. I dont have a problem with that at all. Where did I say I did??????

thebman

Overheal wrote: »

The business I was hired into over the summer ran a U-Haul department which I was brought on to run. When the dept. was first opened we were one of 3 in the zipcode and we brought in perhaps $900/wk Net which was enough money to keep the department self sufficient and siphon money into the primary business.

But the regional manager for U-Haul didn't stop there. Its U-Haul policy basically, to open as many locations as possible. By the time we had to shut down the business, we were 1 of 12 locations in the area and making just over $300/wk which was far below balance.

Short end of the story is In a market like U-Haul or the Taxi industry - where each unit is in business for themselves and each one is supplying a homogenous product - it is very easy for over-saturation to become an issue. In a completely open market for taxi's for example, you would begin to see record turnover - new drivers would come in, and squeeze out older drivers. Like a little motorized legion of half baked mcdonalds employees. Instead of having career drivers who become more experienced and more reputable, you get left with the Shady F*cker of the Week.

Im not sure that freezing licensing is the solution but definitely I would support more barriers to entry into the taxi industry to keep volume relatively sustainable. The last thing I would want to see is some scumlord be able to get a taxi license, and by next week be feeling up some passed out girl in his passenger seat, or something like that.

Agree with this, taxi drivers are their own worse enemy with regard to public opinion though.

The regulator like almost all Irish regulators is ineffective and needs to be tougher in insuring good standards for the industry. Our financial, energy, broadband and taxi regulators are all jokes. The current government just wants to remove responsibility from themselves but not place it on the regulator either so we stuck in a void in all these areas where, when problems arise we are told by politicians to talk to the regulator and by the regulator that they don't have the powers required and to talk to the politicians.

This goes back and forth until a new topic takes focus. Its ridiculous, ineffective and needs complete reform.

Taxipete29

thebman wrote: »

Agree with this, taxi drivers are their own worse enemy with regard to public opinion though.

The regulator like almost all Irish regulators is ineffective and needs to be tougher in insuring good standards for the industry. Our financial, energy, broadband and taxi regulators are all jokes. The current government just wants to remove responsibility from themselves but not place it on the regulator either so we stuck in a void in all these areas where, when problems arise we are told by politicians to talk to the regulator and by the regulator that they don't have the powers required and to talk to the politicians.

This goes back and forth until a new topic takes focus. Its ridiculous, ineffective and needs complete reform.

Couldnt agree more

blahblah06

irishbird wrote: »

so if you are making money, what was the point of the protest?

Look at the news to find out. Enough with stupid questions

Zulu

blahblah06 wrote: »

at the end of the day...

At the end of the day blahblah06 you are still avioding answering my question: what is your problem with fair trade?
Because, essentially, thats what you were protesting about.

population

blahblah06 wrote: »

Look at the news to find out. Enough with stupid questions

OK

Have read the papers, watched the news, listened to the radio and read this thread top to toe. What was the protest about???

gdael

blahblah06 wrote: »

Why would any sane person stay running a business where they are losing money? WHO SAYS WERE LOOSING MONEY OVERALL?

Taxipete29 wrote: »

I am not complaining about my earnings

Straight from the horses mouths.
No great revelation though. We always knew taxi driver werent in the poor house as they always like to claim. Its just good so see some taxi drivers admit it.

Ham'nd'egger

Zulu wrote: »

At the end of the day blahblah06 you are still avioding answering my question: what is your problem with fair trade?
Because, essentially, thats what you were protesting about.

One of the issues in the taxi trade is with unlicenced drivers, be they drivers who operate outside of the areas that they are allowed to drive or drivers who plain don't have a licence to operate. This ensures unfair trade in the industry and is one massive issue that is virtually unaddressed by the Regulators Office, mainly due to it's rule changes in 2006.

population

Overheal wrote: »

Like a little motorized legion of half baked mcdonalds employees. Instead of having career drivers who become more experienced and more reputable, you get left with the Shady F*cker of the Week

There were alot of 'shady f8ckers' in the business pre deregulation. Equally I had alot of abusive drivers not know where the hell they were going and overcharge me for their services after I waited for hours in the rain to try get home pre dergulation. Also you seem to equate length of time in a given industry with 'experienced and reputable'. So pre-deregulation, what reputation did taxi drivers have in this country??? I worked with electricians 20 years ago who were sh1te. Have bumped into some of them over the years and they are still sh1te. Wouldn't trust em to change a bulb.

Zulu

population wrote: »

OK

Have read the papers, watched the news, listened to the radio and read this thread top to toe. What was the protest about???

Fair trade: Taxi drivers are against it.

The taxi drivers are against fair trade and want to create a cartel/oligopoly so that they can control prices, ensuring they make plently of money without having to be competitive.

John Mason

blahblah06 wrote: »

Look at the news to find out. Enough with stupid questions

i asked a simple question

i have looked at the news, read the papers, and read all the threads.

according to everything i have read the protest was about the fact there were too many taxis and drivers werent making any money.

but you have just said you are making money, so anyway, i will ask you if the protest wasnt about money what was it about?

its a very simple question

KoolKid

irishbird wrote: »

i asked a simple question

i have looked at the news, read the papers, and read all the threads.

according to everything i have read the protest was about the fact there were too many taxis and drivers werent making any money.

but you have just said you are making money, so anyway, i will ask you if the protest wasnt about money what was it about?

its a very simple question

TBH none of the taxi drivers can not put up a decent argument on this.
They will not answer a straight question.
They say they are making no money & protest about it & then argue they are making money. If so you should be grateful in the current climate.
You have a job & are making money. What mre do you want???

gdael

Zulu wrote: »

Fair trade: Taxi drivers are against it.

The taxi drivers are against fair trade and want to create a cartel/oligopoly so that they can control prices, ensuring they make plently of money without having to be competitive Work.

Fixed it for you.

gdael

koolkid wrote: »

They say they are making no money

The taxi drivers in this thread say the opposite.

Spook_ie

Zulu wrote: »

Fair trade: Taxi drivers are against it.

The taxi drivers are against fair trade and want to create a cartel/oligopoly so that they can control prices, ensuring they make plently of money without having to be competitive.

I have tended to stay out of this thread since it's reincarnation, but I have to take you to task on that outright blatent untruth. The Taxi Regulator and before that the Councils control the price not the taxi drivers, that's why there's a sealed taximeter installed in legitimate taxis...

Ham'nd'egger

koolkid wrote: »

TBH none of the taxi drivers can not put up a decent argument on this.
They will not answer a straight question.
They say they are making no money & protest about it & then argue they are making money. If so you should be grateful in the current climate.
You have a job & are making money. What mre do you want???

Actually your "questions" (though in your case, it's more of a rant) has been answered dozens and dozens of times before; not just on here but on other forums, newspapers, media debates, etc etc. Why don't you go out and have a look for some of the answers to your questions, they are there in abundance.

Zulu

Spook_ie wrote: »

I have tended to stay out of this thread since it's reincarnation, but I have to take you to task on that outright blatent untruth. The Taxi Regulator and before that the Councils control the price not the taxi drivers, that's why there's a sealed taximeter installed in legitimate taxis...

blatent untruth? I think not. The Taxi Regulator controls the maximum price.

Taxi drivers are able to, should they wish, charge less. Evidently they won't do this though.

So if you are going to "take me to task", do so correctly, and while you're at it you might answer this question:

What problem do you have with fair competition?

Taxipete29

koolkid wrote: »

TBH none of the taxi drivers can not put up a decent argument on this.
They will not answer a straight question.
They say they are making no money & protest about it & then argue they are making money. If so you should be grateful in the current climate.
You have a job & are making money. What mre do you want???

I didnt want to get drawn into another on of these arguments because I have done it all before and answered all these questions before. My stance on the need for change has not altered however my views on how to acheive that change has.

I have not been asked any straight questions on this thread. What do you want to know??

Zulu

Taxipete29 wrote: »

I have not been asked any straight questions on this thread. What do you want to know??

WTF

Here's a straight question for you:

What problem do you have with fair competition?

gdael

Zulu wrote: »

WTF

Here's a straight question for you:

What problem do you have with fair competition?

Heres another:


What problem do you have with fair competition?

rubadub

blahblah06 wrote: »

you love reapeating yourself dont you rub.

No, I hate it, I find it extremely annoying having to repeatedly post the same question without answer. At least you are admitting you are actually seeing my questions reposted over and over, and just choosing to ignore them. No doubt you cannot come up with an answer which will not shed you in a very bad and hypocritical light. In this and the other thread nobody has yet given a reasonable answer to my questions, or others like Zulus fair trade question, which is pretty much the same as mine too.

rubadub wrote: »

Are there any other jobs that taximen think people should be forced into full time employment in? Or ones they should not be allowed to part time? Window cleaning perhaps, or general contract cleaning.

Taxipete29 wrote: »

Nobody is trying to stop people taking a 2nd job

Some seem to be

blahblah06 wrote: »

its the part timers greedy gits that really annoy me

Spook_ie

Zulu wrote: »

blatent untruth? I think not. The Taxi Regulator controls the maximum price.

Taxi drivers are able to, should they wish, charge less. Evidently they won't do this though.

So if you are going to "take me to task", do so correctly, and while you're at it you might answer this question:

What problem do you have with fair competition?

Get it right, you said the taxidrivers control the price, we don't the taxi regulator controls the price, myself as a taxidriver decide if you warrant a discount based on how nice a customer you are, what sort of mood I'm in, what bills I have forthcoming etc. BUT I don not control the price, it's fixed as per regulations.

As to what do I have against fair competition, myself nothing, I'll fight any businessman ( which is what I am ) on a level pitch. I don not count people who have a PAYE job as being on a level pitch, neither do I count people on Back To Work Enterprise Allowences as being on a level pitch.

As regards all the people on here who keep saying that taxidriving is a low skill therefore low paid job, I would remind you that it isn't a job it's a business with it's associated profit/loss margins. When those margins are being pressured from sources other than fair competition, I reserve the right to moan 'n whinge, as you put it.

As to the ultimate question that seems to keep cropping up about double jobbers, I drive my taxi full time to make a living and provide for my family responsibilities, as well as to make enough capital to reinvest in the business and keep the present investment on the road. To be forced into working excessive hours to keep my business afloat is not in the interests of either myself or the customer. The double jobbing (PAYE) taximen in the industry are undermining the ability for full time taxi drivers to make the business sufficently profitable to reinvest in the newer cars being regulated for. It is also a simple matter for the taxi regulator to issue the edict "You drive a taxi, then in the interests of public safety that is the only thing you can do" simplicity itself

blahblah06

Zulu wrote: »

blatent untruth? I think not. The Taxi Regulator controls the maximum price.

Taxi drivers are able to, should they wish, charge less. Evidently they won't do this though.

So if you are going to "take me to task", do so correctly, and while you're at it you might answer this question:

What problem do you have with fair competition?

Have u ever heard of 8202020?

gdael

This is funny.

http://irishtaxi.org/forum/index.php?topic=1712.0

Do taxi drivers actually think anyone is on their side? Talk about having your head up your arse

KoolKid

I have not been asked any straight questions on this thread. What do you want to know??

Why should Taxi drivers be given special treatment over any other business who are finding it difficult to make a profit.?
Why would any sane person stay running a business when they are not making any money?
If you are making money then what exactly is your protests about?
If there is no money to made is this business why would anyone be concerned about more people getting into the business?
If you owned a Spar & somebody opened a centra beside you. Would you class the owner of the Centra agreedy git because he owns another shop already?
Would you protest that this shop should be closed because it affect your business?

blahblah06

lol koolkid you keep on adding questions ive already answered the ones you asked me and you ignored me after i made a fool of you