For Immediate Release: June 26, 2010

Assemblyman Lancman and the New York Taxi Workers Alliance Announce Passage of the Taxi Driver Protection Act

Drivers and State Lawmakers Urge Governor to Sign into Law Immediately

What: The New York State Assembly and Senate passed the Taxi Driver Protection Act, with sweeping votes in both houses: 141 Yes and 1 No in the Assembly on June 22nd and 60 Yes and 0 No in the Senate on June 25th. Authored and sponsored by Assemblyman Rory Lancman and Senator Eric Adams, the Act increases the penalties on assaults against taxicab, black car, and livery drivers and requires a sticker in every taxicab: "WARNING: Assaulting A Taxi Driver Is Punishable By Up To Twenty-Five Years In Prison." On misdemeanor assaults which carry maximum one year prison, the penalty will increase to a mandatory two year prison term if the victim is a driver. On felony assaults, there will be a penalty enhancement of five additional years to the term if the victim is a driver. The bill now goes to the Governor for signing.

Drivers will stand with Assemblyman Lancman to call on Governor Paterson to sign the bill into law immediately.

Who: Assemblyman Rory Lancman; Bhairavi Desai of New York Taxi Workers Alliance; and NYC Taxi Drivers.

When: Sunday June 27, 2010 at 11 AM.

Where: Penn Station at 8th Avenue and 31st Street

download press release here

For Immediate Release: June 25, 2010

Assembly: 141 Yes / 1 No ; Senate: 60 Yes / 0 No

On Friday, June 25th at about 4:30pm, in a unanimous vote—60 Yes, 0 no—the NYS Senate passed the Taxi Driver Protection Act sponsored by Senator Eric Adams. The Assembly passed the same bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Rory Lancman, on Tuesday, June 22nd in a vote of 141 to 1. The Taxi Driver Protection Act increases the penalties on assaults against taxicab, black car, and livery drivers and requires a sticker in every taxicab: "WARNING: Assaulting A Taxi Driver Is Punishable By Up To Twenty-Five Years In Prison." On misdemeanor assaults which carry maximum one year prison, the penalty will increase to a mandatory two year prison term if the victim is a driver. On felony assaults, there will be a penalty enhancement of five additional years to the term if the victim is a driver. The bill now goes to the Governor for signing. Within ten days, the bill will become law.

We are overjoyed beyond words.

We raise this victory in prayer to our brother Shajedur Rahman who, four and a half years later, remains in a vegetative state after recovering from a coma following an assault on October 2, 2005. We are indebted to his beautiful wife Shahida and their three beautiful girls whose courage has guided this campaign at every step and juncture.

We are so thankful to our superb Sponsors, Assemblyman Lancman who championed and authored the bill with unbelievable precision and commitment and the incomparable Senator Adams who kept up our spirits and championed a ninth inning rally to bring home the victory!

We want to especially recognize staff Allison Weingarten and Brad Fischer for their unwavering dedication to the protection of taxi workers.

We also thank Taxi and Limousine Commission Chairman David Yassky who endorsed the campaign within just days of taking his new post.

We are humbled by our injured brothers and sisters who have graciously taken some of the most traumatic moments of their lives and used them for a lifetime of protection for their fellow drivers. This campaign was born in the hospital bed of our brother Mamnun Ul Haq, co-founder of NYTWA, who despite shooting pain from the wounds of a 10-inch hunting knife, imagined a political solution where justice lay in the future, not a bitter past. We salute with admiration all the sisters and brothers who have stood with us at press conferences and hearing rooms, retelling their nightmare for a better tomorrow: Mamnun Ul Haq, Neeru Singh, Mohammad Chowdhury, Enois Malbranche, Ousmane Drame, Ndiaye Serigne, Jangbir Singh, Syed Salman, Abubakar Abdallah, Jamil Hussain, Zakir Howlader, Amarjit Singh Soni, Gurmail Singh, Frederick Dsouza, among thousands.

This victory was shouldered by the members of NYTWA who made the trek to Albany, sacrificing income, sleep, rest, paying lease out of pocket and covering the trip costs themselves. You are our heroes.

May this victory—won in an unprecedented six weeks of mobilization—be the shining reminder that unity is power and workers united will never be defeated.

At the end of the day, after all other reflection, may this victory above all serve as a dedication to the brothers and sisters we have lost through the years. May their loved ones know we never forgot. We dedicate to you, Mohammad Elwaleed, Mohammad Butt, Ibrahima Doukare, Humayun Laskar, in our loving memory.

Download press release here

Download Flyer here and outreach to fellow drivers!

For Immediate Release:  May 23, 2010

Mohammad Chowdhury says he and his friends are driving in a motorcade to Albany on Tuesday morning because maybe if a law existed prior to March 28th, 2010 he would have been spared from a vicious slash to the neck that left him with 18 stitches.  “I know how lucky I am to still be alive.  Maybe my next brother won’t be lucky.  We need Albany to pass a law and not leave us helpless,” said Mr. Chowdhury.  The New York Taxi Workers Alliance is organizing the motorcade to push for the passage of the Taxi Driver Protection Act.

Introduced by Assemblyman Rory Lancman and State Senator Eric Adams, the Act would classify assaults on drivers as felonies and require a warning sign inside taxis, similar to the stickers in buses and subways.  Drivers will hold a send-off rally in the morning before lining up to drive in unison to the capital.  Albany still has to hold Committee hearings before the bill reaches a general vote.  There are currently 23 sponsors.  Other states, including California and Illinois, already prosecute crimes against drivers as felonies and states such as Pennsylvania require warning signs.

Joining Mr. Chowdhury will be Mamnun Ul Haq, a veteran driver who co-founded the union in 1998, who was stabbed in the back with a ten-inch hunting knife, glazed on both sides, by a passenger in 2005.  Mr. Haq says the physical pain comes and goes but the mental terror never leaves you.  “You keep looking behind you and around you all the time.  You don’t ever feel the same again when you get back behind the wheel and just try to do your job,” he said. There has been no arrest in the case.

Neeru Singh’s assailant was caught after five of her friends, overhearing the struggle and her screams for help on the cell phone, went off-duty and drove to the location to apprehend the woman who had choked and assaulted their friend after calling her racial slurs and pounding in the car half-way through the ride in 2008.  “We are serving hundreds of people everyday and we are collecting tax for the MTA.  We are providing a very good service to the city. They should protect us.”

"Taxi drivers are thirty times more likely to be killed on the job than other workers, and New York City houses the largest taxi driver industry in the nation, said Assemblyman Lancman (D-Queens), chair of the Assembly Subcommittee on Workplace Safety and author of the Taxi Driver Protection Act.    “These men and women bravely perform a vital service for our state and they deserve our respect and protection.  It is time to pass the Taxi Driver Protection Act and make assaulting a taxi driver a felony."

NYTWA says the real number of incidents is higher than official statistics because most incidents go unreported by drivers, but the cases that do come forward indicate high violent crimes.  “The idea that a working person is facing the possibility of being choked, stabbed, struck with a weapon, or left permanently injured or killed is just unacceptable.  Albany can make this happen quick and unless it does, more blood will be shed by hard working taxi and for-hire-vehicle drivers,” said Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.

Abubakar Abdallah, a victim of car jacking and an assault that left his nose fractured and head and face wounded on April 23rd, says his message is simple.  “I want the blood that I shed and that of all of my brothers and sisters to have meaning and not be ignored.”

Click here for PDF of press release

Two Latest Taxi Driver Assault Victims Speak Out
Call on Drivers to Motorcade to Albany on May 25th to Urge Taxi Driver Protection Act

Two more taxi drivers reported assaults on the job, just weeks after another hack miraculously survived being slashed across the neck. Abubakar Abdallah, 46, was left bleeding from cuts to the face and shoulder and a fractured nose, before five assailants car jacked his taxi and collided into a private car. Jangbir Singh, 45, was spat at, called racial slurs, told to “go back to your fu*&^ng country” and assaulted in the arm with a metal pipe, all while his passenger, a tourist returning to Canada, sat in the back screaming. Thirty-year veteran Beresford Simmons said, “(w)e need an anti-violence bill to stop yellow cabs from being turned into moving targets. These assaults leave us drivers and even our riders and others on the street vulnerable and injured.”

Drivers added that they have been made more vulnerable of late when the former TLC Chairman branded the workforce as petty thieves, before backtracking ten days later. “The allegation was front page, the backtracking page twenty-something. This political attack and subsequent attacks by the media on drivers trickle down to harassment and violence on the streets,” said New York Taxi Workers Alliance Executive Director Bhairavi Desai. Mr. Abdallah and Mr. Singh joined the NYTWA in calling for a “Day of Enough is Enough: Respect our Labor. Protect our Lives.” when all taxis will be adorned with symbolic red ribbons and mobilize for a motorcade to Albany on May 25th to urge the passage of the Taxi Driver Protection Act. The Act would make assaults against drivers a felony and mandate warning signs inside taxis, same as ones already in buses and subways. Introduced by Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Q) and State Senator Eric Adams (D-B), the bill has also been endorsed by newly appointed Taxi and Limousine Commission Chairman David Yassky. The most recent Department of Labor cited taxi drivers as being thirty times more likely to be killed on the job and once again ranked the profession in the top ten most dangerous. NYTWA says this is despite most assaults going unreported by drivers to the police and even to the union.

On Friday night April 23rd, 2010 at approximately 11:00pm, Mr. Abadallah was returning from a dinner break to his taxi parked at 104th Street and Second Avenue when three teenagers held his door from closing, while two others got into the taxi from the front passenger’s side. All repeatedly punched and kicked Mr. Abdallah, then dragged him out of the front seat, robbing him of his wallet and cell phone. They then car jacked the taxi, taking it for a joy ride a few blocks before colliding into a private car. Several restaurants on the block cater to taxi drivers. The NYPD has put out a Crime Stoppers alert with images of some of the assailants captured on local surveillance video.

Mr. Singh was followed two blocks by the assailant in a private van until both were stuck in traffic at 40th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues at about 3:30pm on Thursday, April 29, 2010. The assailant had been honking and screaming at Mr. Singh when the two were stopped on 39th Street and a female rider ran to get inside the cab. Two blocks later, the rage turned violent as the van operator smashed the taxi’s driver’s side window with a metal pipe and then struck Mr. Singh. Despite the visible injury and damage, the first two officers on the scene refused to make an arrest. “It was humiliating to explain myself when I was the one bleeding,” said Mr. Singh. “Many rights we don’t have. But safety?” The assailant was eventually arrested and charged with assault in the second degree.

Both Mr. Abdallah and Mr. Singh said they will join the taxi caravan to the state capital on May 25th, hoping their suffering will not be in vain. “I want the blood that I shed to have meaning and not be ignored,” said Mr. Abdallah.

For Immediate Release:  April 10, 2010

For More Information, please contact:

Ms. Bhairavi Desai of NYTWA @ 917-945-7286
Ms. Allison Weingarten of Assemblyman Rory Lancmans’ Office @ 518-229-6252
Mr. Peter Katona of State Senator Eric Adams’ Office @ 347-733-2486

Taxi Driver Slashed Across Neck in Brutal Attack

Drivers and State and City Officials Rally for Taxi Driver Protection Act

PRESS CONFERENCE
Sunday, April 11^th
11:00 am

Penn Station:  8^th Avenue @ 31^st Street

Taxi driver Mohammed Chowdhury, 33, never thought his good deed to drive home two women who approached his off-duty cab at 4:30am early Sunday morning, March 28, would end with a fight for his life after being slashed across the neck and beaten in the head and face.  The cut went through two layers of skin, requiring 18 stitches, and was just inches from the jugular vein.  “When I see the pictures, I cannot believe it.  It’s a miracle that I am still alive,” said Mr. Chowdhury, surrounded by fellow members of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.  “Maybe you need luck to survive, but you need the law to make sure it never happens in the first place,” he added.  “We need Albany to pass the Taxi Driver Protection Act so the public knows that we taxi drivers are not alone.  They should know someone cares if anything happens to us.”  The Act would make mandatory prosecutions of assaults against taxi drivers as felonies and a sign in all taxis:  "WARNING:  Assaulting a Taxi Driver is a Felony Punishable by Up to Seven Years in Prison."  Similar penalties already exist to prevent assaults against NYC transit workers.

Mr. Chowdhury, a Bangladesh native who has been driving taxi since 2006, was on his way to his Queens garage for shift-change when the two women asked to be taken to the Bronx.  Mid-route, one of the women shut the partition window and within minutes, Mr. Chowdhury could smell the urine.  The passenger had crouched down in the back cabin.  When reaching the red light, Mr. Chowdhury pulled over and asked her to go to the McDonald’s at the corner as his taxi was “not a bathroom.”  She reluctantly stepped out of the cab and continued to urinate at the curb side.  When Mr. Chowdhury asked her to clean the cab as he “couldn’t keep driving with the smell,” the woman became aggressive and started to yell profanities at him.  The second female passenger came out of the cab and within minutes, threw a knife to the co-assailant and jumped to pull back Mr. Chowdhury’s head while the first woman cut him across the protruding neck.  They then grabbed their bags and hit him over the head and face while the blood gushed out of his neck.  Two EMT workers driving close by rushed to the scene, one to Mr. Chowdhury and the other to the two women.  Mr. Chowdhury says he did not at first realize the extent of the cut.  “I looked down on my shirt and the whole thing was soaked red with blood.  When I touched my throat, my whole finger went through the hole (in the neck.)  I couldn’t believe it.  My face was burning, I was dizzy, I was in shock.”  The EMT worker immediately bandaged up Mr. Chowdhury while his partner held the two women until the police arrived.  Both assailants were arrested and among other charges, are facing attempted murder.

Mr. Chowdhury and the drivers were joined by Act sponsors Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Q) and State Senator Eric Adams.  "How many taxi drivers have to be attacked before we make assaulting a driver a felony," asked Assemblyman Lancman (D-Queens), chair of the Assembly Subcommittee on Workplace Safety and author of the Taxi Driver Protection Act.  "Taxi drivers are sixty times more likely to be killed on the job than other workers, and New York City is home to the largest taxi driver industry in the nation. These men and women deserve our respect and protection."

Mr. Chowdhury’s incident is the latest in horrific violent attacks on taxi drivers.  Two years ago, driver Enois Malbranche was blinded in the right eye after being shot point blank during morning rush hour.  Less than a year prior, driver Mohammed Elwaleed was mowed down by a private motorist following a routine fender bender.  Illinois and California prosecute assaults on drivers as felonies and states such as Pennsylvania require signs in taxis warning against crimes against the driver.

“We’ve stood with too many members who’ve been stabbed, choked, permanently injured, beaten by groups of people and with heavy weapons.  It is simply unacceptable for a workforce of over 40,000 to not know if they will come home in a body bag or a cast all for serving the public for 12-hour shifts,” said NYTWA Executive Director Bhairavi Desai.  “Drivers deserve better and the state should act quickly to make it happen.”

The Act has been endorsed by Taxi and Limousine Commission Chairman David Yassky.  “Taxi and for-hire vehicle drivers provide an important public service to our city, and we need to maximize their safety.  The Taxi Driver Protection Act will send a strong and clear message that violence of any kind against drivers will not and cannot be tolerated,” said Mr. Yassky.  “The TLC stands with the NYTWA in our mutual support for state legislation to strengthen protections for drivers.”

State Senator Adams, a decorated police officer and crime victims advocate said the Act will go a long way in establishing safer conditions for the drivers.  “Stricter laws often have been used to curb violent crimes against individuals in hazardous public jobs, such as police officers.  While it is unusual to design legislation to protect a private occupation, taxi and for-hire drivers make up a particularly vulnerable group performing an extremely important public service.  They work with cash, work alone, and work at night, all factors that amplify risk.  Justice requires that we increase deterrence.”  The bill is awaiting a committee hearing in both the Assembly and Senate and then a general vote.

# # #

For Immediate Release: March 23^rd, 2010

Drivers Say Problems Won’t be Fixed Until the Technology is Replaced;
Call for Independent Investigation of TLC

Press Conference

The New York Taxi Workers Alliance will hold a press conference outside TLC headquarters, demanding an apology to go along with TLC Chairman Mathew Daus' backtracking on the agency's charges made just ten days of universal overcharging by drivers.  The TLC has come under fire after admitting at a City Council hearing that upon further review, a "significant" number of the rides they accused drivers of overcharging were actually charged at the lawful rate.  Mr. Daus also acknowledged that the mistake was with the meter design and GPS-data reporting.  Just ten days prior, Mr. Daus had issued a press release accusing 35,585 drivers of complicity in overcharging 1.8 million rides at a cost of $8.3 million over 26 months.  The fares represented half of one percent of all rides in the time period, but implicated the entire workforce.  The agency's backing off from the shocking allegation has the drivers feeling vindicated and all the more enraged over the initial accusation.

NYTWA, a union of over 13,000 members, has been in a heated public battle with the TLC for their indictment of the entire workforce and has been calling for attention to the GPS-meter malfunctions and an independent audit of the investigation since the press release was first issued on March 12th.  "We demand an apology," said NYTWA Executive Director Bhairavi Desai.  "Chairman Daus owes an apology to the hard-working taxi drivers of New York City who he vilified and smeared across the globe and an apology to the NYC riding public in whom he stirred up fear and confusion.  Mr. Daus' admission only gives more reason for an independent audit of (the TLC's) findings and an investigation into its rushed release," said Ms. Desai.  "The Chairman needs to answer for this mismanagement and for taking out meters that worked fine and replacing them with ones that failed the drivers and the public."

"He sent the message to the whole world that we NYC taxi drivers are all crooks and thieves and the public should be careful of us.  I know my daughter wants to know why our Chairman thinks this about us," said 18-year veteran Victor Salazar.  "It is really offensive and it's damaging to our whole industry."  NYTWA said both drivers and riders flooded the union office with calls, outraged over the TLC's blanket assertion.  "Why are we second-class citizens to a meter in their eyes?" said Mr. Salazar.

All taxis used to have one basic meter design until 2007, when the TLC mandated new meters to accommodate TVs in the back, a credit card reader, a text message box in the front and GPS-tracking software on the meter.  Three technology vendors were awarded a contract to outfit all 12,237 taxis with the new technology package.  "The meters are overloaded.  The buttons are tiny and in the night time, you have to struggle just to see them," said 30-year veteran Beresford Simmons.  "Because the vendors aren't TLC licensees, we can't even file complaints against them when we have a problem or take them to court when we lose time because the system breaks down.

Mr. Simmons showed a photo taken of his text message box which displayed an alert of a system-wide failure of the credit card readers of over 3,000 cabs outfitted by one company.  "(The message) said don't bother coming to the garage or calling the company, they're closed.  The passenger doesn't know it's not our fault.  But if (a rider) complained that night that a driver refused to take credit card, the TLC would fine the driver," he added.  "Every time there's been a problem, the TLC puts the blame on the cab driver." 

Drivers said the only real solution is to bring back old meters.  "The old system was 1-2-3, start, stop and print," said driver Mohammad Ahmed. "If the city doesn't admit that there is a real problem with the design, operation and data collection of these GPS-meters, the problems will continue," said Ms. Desai. "Chairman Daus is already leaving.  He has nothing to lose here.  It's our jobs and the riders' money that's on the line.  The TLC should get rid of this system and bring back something simpler and more reliable," added Mr. Simmons.

#

click here for PDF of press release

For Immediate Release:  FRIDAY, March 12, 2010
For More Information, please call:  Bhairavi Desai

NYTWA Statement on TLC's Overcharge Indictment of Entire Taxi Workforce

Investigate the Investigation!

"The TLC released findings today alleging overcharges on average of $4.45 per fare by a whopping over 35,500 drivers over 26 months.  While there are over 49,000 hack license holders, only about 30,000 are full-time, steady drivers who operate 13,237 medallion taxicabs.  So at 35,000 alleged violators, we are talking the whole universe of drivers.  The TLC's findings are based on technology - there are no actual witnesses to the allegations.  The fact that the technology condemns the whole universe of active drivers alone tells us that this was not about individuals; there was a systemic failure here.  There is only one common element across the board in all of these alleged incidents:  the taxi meter and technology. The drivers varied.  The trips varied.  The payments varied.  Only the meters and technology were the same.

Last night, March 11th, a message appeared in all cabs served by one of the three GPS vendors, stating that the credit card readers would be out for up to four hours last night so drivers could only take cash.  How many riders were angry and doubtful of the driver, blaming him or her when they were told the reader wasn't working?  Drivers have been scapegoated for the failures of this technology over and again.

There should be a more thorough investigation before judgment is cast on an entire workforce. Taxi drivers are some of the hardest working and honest New Yorkers, laboring back-breaking 12-hour shifts without safety or health care.  There are countless stories of drivers returning diamonds and tens of thousands of dollars in cash.  Yet, according to the technology, the same workforce would cheat the general public over $4?  These allegations raise more questions about the technology, the meters, and the investigation - than it does about drivers."

Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director
New York Taxi Workers Alliance

click here for PDF

NYTWA scored another victory for drivers as the Port Authority agrees to renovate the bathrooms at the JFK Airport Central Taxicab Holding Lot after organizers Bill Lindauer, Osman Chowdhury and Beresford Simmons made the demand at the Port’s Board of Directors meeting on December 10.  A restroom trailer will be set up for one week during January 2010 renovations.  NYTWA took on the cause after members called the union office and filed the complaint.  During the public meeting, NYTWA also called for a long-term solution to JFK hustlers and asked for the Port Authority to extend their sting operations to Manhattan and LaGuardia Airport.

Click here to download PDF of press release

For Immediate Release: November 30, 2009

A New York Taxi Workers Alliance delegation traveled to Washington, D.C. to bring the plight of New York City taxi drivers directly to the President himself.  Executive Director Bhairavi Desai and co-founder and Organizing Committee member Javaid Tariq represented the union at President Barack Obama's first and highly anticipated state dinner, held on Tuesday, November 24th in honor of the visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.  "When we first met President Obama on the receiving line, he said, '(y)ou know I was an organizer too'," reported Ms. Desai.  "This was such an honor for us.  I remember the days when the old Mayor wouldn't allow us to enter City Hall.  And here we were in the White House."

Ms. Desai and Mr. Tariq were seated with the highest ranking labor leader in the US, Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO.  At tables to their other side were Vice President Biden and Attorney General Eric Holden and two tables away was the President himself.  The President was seated next to Ms. Kaur, India's First Lady, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Colin Powell, and Senator John Kerry.  Mrs. Obama was seated with PM Singh at a table on the other side of the walkway.  Ms. Desai and Mr. Tariq also walked up to the President during dinner.  "We asked him if we could give him a tour of NYC in a taxi and he said that while Secret Service would not let him do that now, he would definitely take up the offer in the future," said Ms. Desai. "To know the White House knows about our struggle for justice and rights for taxi drivers makes us so proud.  That's union power.  All the drivers should know that we are winning allies in high places," beamed Mr. Tariq.

Union Brings Taxi Drivers' Fight to National Leaders

NYTWA used their stay in DC for the state dinner to meet with other national officials.  Organizers Bill Lindauer, Victor Salazar and Beresford Simmons joined Ms. Desai and Mr. Tariq for meetings with the Department of Labor, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and the AFL-CIO.  "We asked each official for support to stop high leases, the five percent credit card theft, the fifty cents MTA tax, and the hustlers at the airports and the city," said Mr. Salazar.  NYTWA has been meeting with city officials about these same issues and also for rights to bus lanes and full turn rights for occupied taxis.  “We were very encouraged when we heard the news from the Queens District Attorney's office of an undercover operation at JFK Airport during which 18 hustlers were arrested.  We need to make sure the others don't move more into the city as a result of enforcement at the airports," said Mr. Simmons.

NYTWA's fight for lower leases received a big boost when on Friday, November 20th, a state judge dismissed the garage owners' attempt to raise the lease cap.  "The garages were suing for the right to charge over $4.65 more per shift, and were challenging new TLC rules that allow the city to lower the lease caps, not just raise them, and no longer require the TLC to only or primarily look at owner profits in deciding the lease caps," said Ms. Desai.  Represented by attorneys from Paul, Weiss NYTWA submitted affidavits to make the court aware of the plight of drivers and the economic stranglehold that leases have on drivers.

"This victory gives us a great boost in stopping garages from charging weekly drivers the daily rate and stopping brokers from charging over the lease cap on paid off cars.  This legal case was necessary for future victories,” said Mr. Lindauer.

Having left for DC on the heels of a victory and hearing the positive news about the anti-hustler enforcement gave the delegation more energy in their high-powered meetings.  "The White House dinner was about bringing drivers' struggle to the highest office in the nation.  Drivers should know the union will take our fight everywhere necessary to win our rights," said Mr. Tariq.

News From…

Councilman Eric Gioia

For Immediate Release: July 19, 2009

Contact: Eric Koch (617) 733-6891

Gioia Study Finds More Than Half Of New York's Taxi Drivers Uninsured

45% Of Taxi Drivers Who Visited The Hospital in The Past Year Had No Health Insurance

New York—Today, Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens), Chairman of the Council Committee on Oversight and Investigations, along with Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the Taxi Workers Alliance, released the findings of a survey Gioia conducted which found that taxi drivers have a 52% uninsurance rate—more than twice as high as the average New Yorker.  The survey also found that nearly 37% of taxi drivers with children had no health insurance. The one-year Gioia study of 314 cab drivers took place between 2008 and 2009.  Gioia proposed a three-point plan to help New York City's over 40,000-licensed drivers live healthier lives.

“Taxi drivers are the invisible face of New York’s transit- and my study found they are also potentially among the most unhealthy,” said Councilman Gioia. “Every day, thousands of taxi drivers go to work without health insurance, despite working a stressful and unhealthy job. Taxi drivers are essentially a part of our public transportation system—making the city run—and yet unlike public employees, they have no guarantee of health care.  We need to do more.”

“Drivers suffer 60- to 70-hour back-breaking work weeks and are vulnerable to injury from assaults and accidents at a higher rate than any other workforce.  It's unconscionable that workers whose working conditions directly lead to deteriorating health are the very ones who remain uninsured at a higher rate,” said Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the New York City Taxi Workers Alliance

According to the results of a survey by Councilman Gioia, 52% of the more than 300 taxi drivers interviewed had no health insurance, more than twice the percentage citywide. Gioia’s study also found:

• Of those taxi drivers with health insurance, 24% were covered by their spouse—not because they had their own health plan.
• The estimated cost of uncompensated care for taxi drivers without insurance is approximately $13 million per year.
• 45% of taxi drivers who visited the hospital in the past year had no health insurance.
• 44% of taxi drivers who take prescription medication have no health insurance.
• Of taxi drivers surveyed who had both a doctor's visit and a stay in the hospital in the last year—a group particularly in need of insurance and prescription drugs—41% were without insurance.

In order to help taxi drivers live healthier lives, Gioia proposed a three point plan to help fix the chronic uninsurance and health issues which taxi drivers face:

• Conduct On-site Enrollment For Taxi Drivers: The city should work to ensure that every driver who qualifies for public health insurance, including Medicare, Medicaid and Family Health Plus, is enrolled by conducting on-site healthcare enrollment at locations taxi drivers congregate. The TLC and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene should also team up to do regular health surveys of drivers to help identify the short- and long-term health effects of driving a taxi in New York City.
• Driver Insurance: If current comprehensive healthcare reform efforts in Congress fail to create a way to cover taxi drivers and similar workers who do not have insurance, the City should explore an industry-sponsored health fund for taxi drivers.
• Provide On-Site Access to Health Services: The City and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey should partner with New York's public and private hospitals to provide on-site preventative and primary care services at sites where taxi drivers congregate, like JFK and LaGuardia airports, along with providing small exercise facilities for taxi drivers at areas which can support them.

Studies have found that driving a taxi can be very a very unhealthy profession. A report by the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) found that taxi drivers face many health-related issues, including little access to quality health care, few chances to eat healthy meals, and multiple chronic health issues.  The UCLA study, which surveyed 302 Los Angeles cab drivers, found:

• 49% reported that they had back pain severe enough to interfere with daily activities;
• 40% had leg problems, including swollen legs and “left leg limp”; and
• 34% reported eye problems.

"Left leg limp" is a syndrome that, according to UCLA, appears to be caused by infrequent use of the left leg, since the right is used for driving and braking while the left maintains little use during the day. In total, more than half those surveyed had medically diagnosed back and leg problems. More than half of those taxi drivers surveyed in Los Angeles were found to be suffering from severe or extremely severe stress during their day because of the conditions they faced, leading to heart attacks and other heart ailments. Long hours in traffic also lead to lung diseases like asthma.  Additionally, due to long hours with lack of access to bathrooms, drivers often develop bladder disorders.

###

New York—Today, Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens), Chairman of the Council Committee on Oversight and Investigations, along with Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the Taxi Workers Alliance, released the findings of a survey Gioia conducted which found that taxi drivers have a 52% uninsurance rate—more than twice as high as the average New Yorker.  The survey also found that nearly 37% of taxi drivers with children had no health insurance. The one-year Gioia study of 314 cab drivers took place between 2008 and 2009.  Gioia proposed a three-point plan to help New York City's over 40,000-licensed drivers live healthier lives. Click here to continue and for study findings

Click here for media coverage

For Immediate Release: April 28th, 2009

Dozens of taxis caravanned to Albany on Tuesday, April 28th turning the streets and highways of New York into a sea of yellow from Manhattan to Albany and across the Thruway. Taxis from NYTWA and LOMTO (League of Mutual Taxi Owners) covered window to window with signs of, “No Taxi Tax,” “Not On Our Backs,” and “Support Jet Fuel Tax” traveled 300 miles round trip to stop lawmakers from passing a $1 taxi tax as toward a bailout of the MTA and to fix upstate roads and bridges. The proposal is now in the Rules Committee and a full Senate vote is expected the week of May 4th. The bill would then go to the Assembly. Fifty taxis, seventy drivers and industry representatives traveled to make Albany hear the pleas of over 47,000-licensed taxi drivers: We are struggling enough. Don’t single us out. The taxi tax has been under growing criticism. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has called it bothersome and impractical. Governor Paterson said the $1 would be too burdensome to already struggling drivers.

The caravan crusaders held an energetic rally at the gathering point across the Javits Center in front of live cameras from 5:30am until send off at 6:45am. In Albany, they circled the Capitol building with upstate TV crews and photographers filming their every turn. The crew then assembled at the steps of the Capitol for a press conference with Assemblyman Peter M Rivera and proud former taxi driver Assemblyman Jose Rivera.

“Why are we being singled out?” asked NYTWA Organizing Committee Member Victor Salazar, capturing the general sentiment among all NYC’s 40,000-plus licensed yellow taxicab drivers. “It’s more work for less pay because we now add tax collecting to our already hectic 12-hour shifts.”

Managing Director of LOMTO, Vincent Sapone, was also outraged, “While the MTA has enjoyed raises & bonuses every year, Cab Drivers have to survive by working 6-7 days a week with no benefits and we have to wait years for an increase. The dollar tax will destroy our income.” NYTWA estimates that business is already down by over 20% from the recession.

The drivers and industry representatives stood in support of Assemblyman Peter M Rivera’s proposed modest increase by $2 per gallon in the jet fuel tax paid by airlines. According to AM Rivera, "There are over 86 million boarding of airliners in New York State airports yearly. The heavy passenger traffic at New York airports requires the maintenance of road, bridge and rail infrastructure to transport all those passengers. It is only fair to ask for a modest increase in the cost of jet fuel which will have negligible impact on the prices of airline tickets and on the operations of airlines." The Assemblyman’s proposal would also spare businesses and New Yorkers from the controversial payroll tax and tolling of the Harlem River and East River bridges.

“We are supporting the Assemblyman’s proposal because it’s the most fair. It will get the state the money without overburdening any one group,” said NYTWA Executive Director Bhairavi Desai.

“(The $1 taxi tax) will do nothing to help New York's mass transit system and the New Yorkers who pay this tax will never use those upstate roads,” added Executive Director David Pollack of the Committee for Taxi Safety, an industry trade association representing 2,500 taxi medallion agents.

After the spirited speeches, the group divided into meetings with various legislators, including Senate Transportation Committee Chair Martin Malavé Dilan and Senator Bill Perkins, Assembly Labor Committee Chair George Onorato and Assembly Transportation Committee Chair David Gant.

NYTWA is headed to Albany again next week, asking drivers and supporters are being asked to call and visit their state representatives.
###

download press release here

ADVISORY: 

For Immediate Release April 27, 2009

For More Information, please call: 
Bhairavi Desai, New York Taxi Workers Alliance at 917-945-7286
Vincent Sapone, League of Mutual Taxi Owners (LOMTO) at (212) 947-3380 ext. 3110

Taxi Drivers Motorcade to Albany to Protest $1 Taxi Tax
Drivers and Industry Support Modest Increase in Jet Fuel Tax

TUESDAY, APRIL 28th
NYC Press Conference & Send Off: 
6:30am
11th Avenue & 34th St.

Albany: 
Arrival & Circling of Capitol Building:  10:00am
Press Conference @ Steps of Capitol:  10:30am

A sea of yellow taxis will arrive in Albany on Tuesday morning, as drivers incensed by the proposed $1 taxi tax to bailout the MTA and build bridges and roads in upstate New York, are taking their message directly to the state law makers.   The caravan will hold a send off press conference at 6:30am at 11th Avenue and 34th Street before heading up to circle the Capitol Building and holding a press conference at the steps.  They will then meet with individual Senators and Assembly Members.  Drivers have been hit hard by the recession, seeing a drop off in ridership.  They say the $1 will reduce ridership even further, lead to less tips and deny them their own raise for maybe another fie to ten years as taxi fares are generally not increased more than twice a decade.  Joining the drivers in Albany will be Assemblyman Rivera who is proposing a modest increase in the jet fuel tax as an alternative proposal to the taxi tax, payroll tax and tolling the Harlem and East River bridges.  The motorcade is being organized by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance and the League of Mutual Taxi Owners.  The drivers will also be joined in Albany by taxi brokers and owners to demonstrate a united industry opposition to the tax.

Drivers and Industry Support Modest Increase in Jet Fuel Tax

TUESDAY, APRIL 28th
NYC Press Conference & Send Off: 6:30am 11th Avenue & 34th St.
Albany: Arrival & Circling of Capitol Building:  10:00am
Press Conference @ Steps of Capitol:  10:30am

Immediate Release:  April 24, 2009

Drivers Rally with AM Rivera to Reject Taxi Tax
Loud Call for Alternative Modest Increase in Jet Fuel Tax

download press release here

NEW YORK, NEW YORK (04/24/09) – Assemblyman Peter M. Rivera, a senior member of the New York State Legislature, was joined today by the leadership of taxi driver groups from the region to publicly unveiled a sensible and practical plan that if implemented by Albany would generate hundreds of millions of dollars annually for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and upstate communities with airports.

The plan which is an expanded version of a proposal he made to his legislative colleagues last month relies on raising the state levy on jet fuel by as much as 2 dollars per gallon from the current 6 cents. Jet fuel consumption in New York State is over 20 million barrels per year or 854,322,000 gallons per year. A temporary $2 levy per gallon would yield $1.7 billion annually for the MTA and the 16 Upstate communities with airports.

According to Assemblyman Rivera, “Upstate roads and bridges will not be built by taking food off the table of the families of hardworking taxi drivers or by tolling bridges that will make minority neighborhoods into toxic fume yielding parking lots. Albany has failed to take into consideration other revenue options with less negative impact on New York City. One such option is my proposed sales tax on jet fuel sales.”

Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the New York Taxi Worker Alliance, declared, "It's unfair, impractical and excessively punitive to balance the bailout on the backs of hard-working taxi drivers who labor without guaranteed incomes or health care or paid time off.  Assemblyman Rivera's plan is the right thing to do - it will generate the funds without overburdening any one constituency.  It's fair, practical, reasonable with maximum yield and lowest burden.  We urge state lawmakers to adopt it now."
“There are over 86 million boardings of airliners in New York State 18 airports yearly.
The heavy passenger traffic at New York airports requires the maintenance of road, bridge and rail infrastructure to transport all those passengers. It is only fair to ask for a modest increase in the cost of jet fuel which will have negligible impact on the prices of airline tickets and on the operations of airlines.” A $1 increase per gallon of jet fuel would raise the cost of an airline ticket by less than $10 but yield New York over $854 million dollars annually for mass transit projects statewide.

According to AirTran earlier this week, an airline operating out of La Guardia airport, “We expect our fuel cost per gallon to be between $1.75 and $1.80 all in inclusive of taxes, transportation and into-plane fees.” Rivera argued that the analysis on low jet fuel tax by AirTran and found on a premier financial sector web site “clearly shows that there is room for a modest and temporary tax on jet fuel to help fix the problems caused by the mismanagement of the MTA.”

“Our newest and poorest immigrants should not bear the brunt of fixing upstate roads or the MTA mismanagement. This morning Japan’s two largest airlines unveiled plans to totally eliminate their jet fuel surcharge because the price of petroleum is down 60% from last year. This is more evidence that the there is room to tax jet fuel without an adverse impact on our economy. The facts are clear on this. Albany must use this option in the equation to fix the MTA,” declared Rivera.

Rivera noted that, based on jet fuel consumption, substantial transportation infrastructure financing could be raised temporarily, even for the construction of high speed rail in various parts of the State. He released the following suggested tax levy per gallon of jet fuel consumed in New York. “We need leadership with creative ideas that will move our transportation systems into the modern world already enjoyed by Asians and Europeans.” Rivera was referring to the European Union’s recent proposal to tax roundtrips by $75 to begin process of protecting the environment from greenhouse gas emissions from planes. Aviation industry is the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gases, and flights within Europe are on track to triple by 2030.

# # #

download press release

NEWS ALERT
Thursday, April 23, 2009       

Contact:
Guillermo Martinez for AM Rivera - 518-455-5102
Bhairavi Desai, NY Taxi Workers Alliance - 917-945-7286
Mei Ru for Councilmember John Liu - 718-360-9393                                              

Hundreds of Taxi Drivers to Rally at City Hall Against Increased Fees to Bailout MTA, Support Plan to Temporarily Tax Jet Fuel Sales to Improve Mass Transit

Assemblyman Peter M. Rivera, Councilmember John Liu and other elected officials to push tomorrow for a modest tax on jet fuel sales in New York that will generate millions of dollars for MTA and Upstate roads, while having negligible impact on cost of air travel and airline operations

WHO:
Members of the Committee for Taxi Safety
Members of League of Mutual Taxi Owners
Hundreds of New York City Taxi Drivers
Bhairavi Desai, New York Taxi Workers Alliance
Assemblyman Peter M. Rivera
Councilmember John Liu
Other elected officials

WHAT:    Opposed to more fees on taxi drivers, hundreds of cab drivers will join lawmakers to call for legislative leaders to consider a temporary and modest tax on the hundreds of millions of gallon of jet fuel sold in New York State each year. The proposed tax could yield hundreds of millions of dollars for mass transit systems across New York and would help avoid the proposed levy on taxi rides, payroll taxes and bridge tolls that are being     forced on New Yorkers.

WHEN:    Friday, April 24, 2009 at 1:00 PM

WHERE:    Steps of City Hall, New York City

WHY:    State lawmakers are considering a wide range of taxes and fees to rescue the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) from a looming financial crisis.  Groups opposed to additional taxes and fees want legislative leaders to consider alternative revenue sources t hat show great potential to mitigate financial impact on mass transit users. Senior lawmakers at the City and State level believe a modest jet fuel tax will prevent additional fees on taxi rides and other taxes. Complete plan will be unveiled.

# # #

download press release here

For Immediate Release

April 1, 2009

Statement on Proposal to Use Taxis to Bailout MTA

"The proposed plan (to charge an extra 50-cent fee on all taxi rides) is unfair, punitive, and a sign of how out of touch Albany is with working New Yorkers.  Bailing out the MTA on the backs of workers who labor 12-hour shifts, without health care or pension or paid time off will only put drivers deeper in an economic hole and steps further away from winning any raise ourselves for health care or other benefits.  We will suffer less tips, lower rider ship and on some days both.  For every 50 cents that go to the MTA—$50 – $100 a week or $200  – $400 a month—is money drivers will pay out of pocket for the operating expenses, forcing even longer hours.  Already taxi drivers are hurting with 20% less rider ship due to the recession.  Why are drivers being asked to take a wage cut on top of it to bailout the MTA?  We know the Governor and legislature is out of touch with ordinary New Yorkers who do the daily grind of driving a taxicab for a living—considered the most dangerous job in the country by the Department of Labor—but they are also out of touch with our riders.  Many of the men and women we serve everyday are the elderly visiting a doctor or a janitor going home from the night shift or a parent with a baby stroller or a businessperson running to meet their job's demands.  Using hard-working taxi drivers and our riders to bail them out shows our policy makers may be even more morally bankrupt than the MTA is fiscally bankrupt."

Immediate Release:  February 19, 2009

The New York Taxi Workers Alliance scored a huge victory for taxi drivers and riders who are disabled as the Mayor's office agreed to the union's proposals for changes to the TLC's wheel-chair accessible taxi dispatching program.

The new policies go into effect March 1st.   

NYTWA had been calling for an end to a TLC policy of letting accessible vans go straight into the moving lane at JFK Airport, without having to wait in the lot like all other taxi drivers.  "It's been keeping the accessible taxis at JFK and emptying them out of the rest of the city," said NYTWA Executive Director Bhairavi Desai.  "Meanwhile, drivers of all other cars watched their wait time in the lot double up to as much as three hours.  Riders who wanted a wheel-chair accessible cab outside of JFK and the drivers inside JFK both suffered."

While drivers normally can only enter the "short-haul ticket lane" after already waiting in the lot and completing a fare to a near-by destination, accessible taxi drivers were given automatic access.  And they were sent to the next available fare at the terminal, not necessarily riders in need of accessible taxis.  The Mayor's Office agreed to NYTWA's proposal of giving access only after a dispatched call is completed on that day.

The city also agreed to sending messages to drivers as fares become available city-wide, instead of requiring drivers to log-in to zones, using a Blackberry.  "Yellow cabs are always in motion.  By the time a call comes in one zone, we are already in another one," said Beresford Simmons, 60, one of the first wheel-chair taxi purchasers in the industry, and NYTWA Organizing Committee Member.  "Now, after a passenger makes the call to 311, we can be hailed through a message and the first one to respond gets the fare, just like it is on the streets."    

The proposals have been greeted with optimism and a renewed call for more accessible taxis by advocates for the disabled.  "Wheelchair users had given up on central dispatch because taxis just wouldn't come, so we are hopeful that the change proposed by the Taxi Workers Alliance will work," said Jean Ryan, vice chair of the Taxis For All Campaign, a coalition that advocates for wheelchair-accessible taxis and car services. "In the end, though, what we really need are enough accessible cabs on city streets so we can hail a cab rather than be forced to call for one."

Drivers at JFK were elated by the news.  "We were really suffering.  We all lost ten, eleven fares a week.  Instead of rewarding us for working there, we were being punished," said Tanveer Mohammed.  Mr. Simmons, who refused to go straight into the short-haul line and "break the unity," said he was both relieved drivers are no longer being treated unequally and hopeful more disabled passengers would be served.   

Contacts:
Bhairavi Desai, NYTWA, 917-945-7286
Jean Ryan, Taxis For All Campaign, 917-658-0760

City Council Transportation Committee Hearing
Wednesday, January 14, 12:30pm
City Hall
Subway:  4/5/6 to Brooklyn Bridge
R/W to City Hall; 1/2/3/A/C/E to Chambers
Enter on Broadway or Centre St. and go through security.

The New York Taxi Workers Alliance is calling on all taxi drivers and community supporters to come out for a City Council hearing on a bill to stop the 5% surcharge drivers lose on credit card fares.  The Transportation Committee is holding the hearing on Wednesday, January 14th at 12:30pm at City Hall in the Chambers on the 2nd floor.  The Committee must first vote on the bill, Intro 705, before the rest of the council can pass it as a new law.

Intro 705 would let every individual driver become the account holder.  So the monies would go directly to drivers’ accounts and drivers would not lose the 5% they currently lose on even the tip and toll.  Even though banks typically charge 1.5% processing fee, NYC taxi drivers also pay surcharges to the garage or broker they lease the taxi and medallion from as well as to the GPS vendor who supply the credit card machines.  The 5% loss is on top of the extra costs drivers are paying for the machines and higher leases. 

The Council bill would overturn the Taxi and Limousine Commission’s regulation which lets only medallion owners become the account holder.  “We have been working on this for almost one year now.  The January 14th hearing is the most important hearing for drivers to stop the 5%,” said Bhairavi Desai, NYTWA Executive Director.  Several Council Members have already signed on to the bill.  NYTWA is also demanding pre-authorization for all flat fares and a sign informing passengers that they have to pay the driver even if the machine fails. 

“The 5% is a big cut out of our income, especially in this economy where there are fewer passengers.  We take the risks, pay the lease and do the work for 12-hour shifts.  Why should the garages steal our income” says Organizing Committee Member Osman Chowdhury.  Veteran driver Beresford Simmons added, “Our (2007) strikes got the council’s attention.  We can win this if drivers stand together and pack the hearing room.” 

NYTWA is asking drivers to call 212-627-5248 to sign-up to testify or with stories about losses due to the credit cards.  “If drivers have proof of loss of income because the garage didn’t pay them, the card declined or the reader broke down, it’s urgent that they call the union office before the hearing,” said Ms. Desai.

Council Members Urge TLC for Fuel Surcharge
15 CCM’s Urge TLC to Enact Emergency Rulemaking

WEDNESDAY, July 23, 2008
2:00pm
City Hall Steps
City Council Members are calling on the Taxi and Limousine Commission to enact a fuel surcharge to help city’s taxi drivers reeling from the impact of high gas prices. Drivers have been paying $250 to $300 more per week or over $1,000 more a month, compared to even just 18 months ago. Drivers pay for the cost of gas one hundred percent on their own. Twelve Council members sent a letter on July 17th to TLC Chair Mathew Daus, urging emergency rulemaking on the surcharge and enforcement to ensure the money goes only to drivers and not taxi companies.

The Council letter calls the impact of gas prices and the 5% taxi drivers lose in income on credit card fares, “an enormous economic burden on one of our hardest working labor forces.”

City Council Member Diana Reyna (D, Brooklyn), who initiated the support drive, says “Working families can’t afford to lose $300 of their weekly income to gas prices. We should protect drivers the same way airlines protect themselves.”