Is taxi Driving a skilled profession???

Screwthe unions

Hey guys..new to boards,so if this thread is not in the right place,mods please move freely.

Guys..I was a part-time taxi driver up untill my the birth of my son,so now my taxi is rented out. I log onto a taxi drivers chat forum pretty often just to chat to lads involved in the taxi business...anyway one evening I mentioned that in my opinion Taxi driving was an unskilled job that probably doesnt deserve incomes above €40K...a purley personal opinion.

But the backlash I got was unreal...it even got to a point where one group of posters sent me and two other guys a PM with a link to a so called funny picture...when we opened the link it contained a tracking cookie which some of the other posters had put there...the result was one poster who held views similar to mine had his IP address traced to his place of work(he was also a part-timer)....along with certain veiled threats to import our IP address to certain unsavoury websites more or less forced this poster from using the forum now.

But this brings me back to my original question...I think I should really have put this to a more neutral group of people...but is Taxi driving a askilled profession??...I feel it isint.

cormie

I'd say any job that has you out on the roads dealing with Irish drivers is a skilled profession. I drive a van but I also like to make fine carvings with wood and play poker and do many other things which involve skill. They all have different skill requirements but are extremely different classes of skill, but skill none the less.

mikemac

What, it's the most highly skilled job in the country! Sure some drivers can manage the Irish soccer team, the Immigration Bureau (now, I'm not a racist but..) and Minister for Transport.
That's one person doing all these jobs :eek:

Ah no, I'd called it unskilled.

Now if Irish Drivers did something like The Knowledge like they do in London, I'd called it semi-skilled.
The Knowledge is a pretty cool accomplishment but no Irish taxi driver can claim to have somthing like that. In fact, all they do is pass a PSV test, it's not as if an apprenticeship is needed

So unskilled imo

Edit: I'd a quick look at www.taxi.ie.
Jaysus, it's like stormfront over there

Victor

I would say it is semi-skilled at best. You do need to know how to drive and you need to know your way around.

But to be honest, many construction labourers and service workers have similar skill levels.

RuggieBear

unskilled

Terrontress

You need a driving license, which requires a test, so I suppose that is a skill of sorts but I think it is as skilled as every other job.

You need to be able to count to serve behind the counter in McDonalds.
You need better driving skills than a taxi driver to be a binman.

Taxi drivers tend to be rather slovenly in general. I have seen in Japan they all wear uniforms and white gloves etc.

LegacyUser

micmclo wrote:

What, it's the most highly skilled job in the country! Sure some drivers can manage the Irish soccer team, the Immigration Bureau (now, I'm not a racist but..) and Minister for Transport.
That's one person doing all these jobs :eek:

Ah no, I'd called it unskilled.

Now if Irish Drivers did something like The Knowledge like they do in London, I'd called it semi-skilled.
The Knowledge is a pretty cool accomplishment but no Irish taxi driver can claim to have somthing like that. In fact, all they do is pass a PSV test, it's not as if an apprenticeship is needed

So unskilled imo

Edit: I'd a quick look at www.taxi.ie.
Jaysus, it's like stormfront over there

Got that right....

antoinolachtnai

The tomtom is really knocking whatever skill there was out of it.

There are certainly some professional drivers out there who take their job as a taxi driver very seriously and they probably do deserve to earn 40k+ a year, in the same way that there are waiters who deserve to earn far more than the average waiter. My own feeling is that drivers in that category are not the norm, but it really is a joy when you come across one.

It is hard to see how anyone who would threaten a fellow driver in the way you described could be called a 'professional'. Whoever it is has proven what he was trying to deny.

Screwthe unions

Antoin..thats what happened...I was lucky..all the fellas got from me was that my ISP is NTL..they were tracking websites that I was viewing,but thats about it..but the other part-timer who posted there had his IP address right to where he worked and some htreats along the lines of getting a heap of taxi drivers to knock on his office door,logging our IP address on sites that are criminal,giving our information to certain paramilitary groups( I happened to mention that the mob who murdered the 2 sas soldiers in 1988 were bloodthirsty) etc...etc...really nasty stuff...

I complained to the site owner but he seems to be missing at the moment...so I e-mailed the data protection commisioner who seems to be treating the incident pretty seriously...

yes kaiser and micmclo it is Taxi.ie . Its a shame the same rules that posters follow here arent adopted there.

jimmycrackcorm

I'd say it's as skilled as working in Mcdonalds.

Doctor DooM

How do you define skill? its not a job anyone can do, so I guess it requires a skill.

I used to think it was very funny the way retail was considered unskilled. Try it for a few months and tell me if anyone can manage it.

Work in IT now and I consider it an easier job (although I did have to train harder for it. )

patrickc

anyone who can drive and read a map/satnav can be a taxi driver

antoinolachtnai

If you received a threat of this nature I think you should inform the gardai, even if you decide not to push it. That's just too much.

Vmaxer

Screwthe unions wrote:

Antoin..thats what happened...I was lucky..all the fellas got from me was that my ISP is NTL..they were tracking websites that I was viewing,but thats about it..but the other part-timer who posted there had his IP address right to where he worked and some htreats along the lines of getting a heap of taxi drivers to knock on his office door,logging our IP address on sites that are criminal,giving our information to certain paramilitary groups( I happened to mention that the mob who murdered the 2 sas soldiers in 1988 were bloodthirsty) etc...etc...really nasty stuff...

I complained to the site owner but he seems to be missing at the moment...so I e-mailed the data protection commisioner who seems to be treating the incident pretty seriously...

yes kaiser and micmclo it is Taxi.ie . Its a shame the same rules that posters follow here arent adopted there.

Sounds to Me that the Unskilled Taxi Drivers seem to have Skills in I.T, I doubt that any everyday Taxi Driver would have the knowlege or the time to Log Your IP ETC... Sell Your plate move on get a Skilled Job...

Screwthe unions

IMHO a skilled person is a person trained in a recognised area...someone holding a recognised qualifacation( for example I have a higher cert in Electro-mech.enginering).

Like I said before a sparkie is a sparkie no mater where in the world he goes...same with a nurse...same with a carpenter...same with a chef....same with a baker....same with an accountant.

This is a link to where the threats on the site kinda started.

http://http://z11.invisionfree.com/TAXIDOTIE/index.php?showtopic=1375

Duiske

RuggieBear wrote:

unskilled

Agreed.
I worked driving in Dublin for 5yrs. 3 as a courier, then 2 as a drive tester for a comms company. The courier job required no skills.
Guess I would call the drive testing semi-skilled, as I had to spend some time in France learning how to use the equipment.

Noelie

There's no way it's a skilled job, 90% of the taxi's I get I have to give directions on how to get to my destination, how is that skilled.

BendiBus

Unskilled

Sangre

If being a taxi driver is skilled so is being a pizza delivery boy.

Jip

cormie wrote:

I'd say any job that has you out on the roads dealing with Irish drivers is a skilled profession.

The worse drivers anyone has to deal with on Irish roads are Taxi Drivers. Biggest pack of chancers on the road ever, can't stand the majority of them. They think that double yellow lines, no right or left turn signs, filter lights, solid white lines, left and right turn only lanes, queues etc etc apply to them. No skill required at all. Arseh0les.

mickoneill30

I'd say the good ones are skilled. But there are plenty of idiots just doing the bare minimum. Just like any job.

Pineapple stu

Driving is a skill but ripping people off is a skill taxi drivers have to a T.

Hotblack Desiato

cymro wrote:

Driving is a skill but ripping people off is a skill taxi drivers have to a T. an art.

Fixed your post

mickoneill30

If it's not a skilled job and they get paid so much why don't we all do it?

Terrontress

mickoneill30 wrote:

If it's not a skilled job and they get paid so much why don't we all do it?

Because many people prefer to work 9-5.

Taxi driving definitely takes a certain sort of a perosn. But again that is not a skill.

I reckon the best thing ever, as a taxi user, is the black lads who have started it. They are alot more friendly than the Irish guys and don't seem to be as keen on the rip-offs. I definitely trust them more.

LegacyUser

Iv been thinking about this one.I believe that all taxi drivers will need to do some sort of skills enhancement course in near future,so maybe the powers that be know that the current state of affairs isint whats expected from the public.

My opinion is that taxi driving probably isint very skilled.

heres a link to a story.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=474254&in_page_id=1770

Ham'nd'egger

kaiser1 wrote:

Iv been thinking about this one.I believe that all taxi drivers will need to do some sort of skills enhancement course in near future,so maybe the powers that be know that the current state of affairs isint whats expected from the public.

My opinion is that taxi driving probably isint very skilled.

heres a link to a story.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=474254&in_page_id=1770

As a Taxi driver, I would never, ever, ever, ever call it a skilled industry. A lot of tricks in the trade to be learnt, granted, but no great skills as such.

These "skills enhancement" courses are not teaching driver skills, instead they will be teaching drivers such fine arts as guiding the blind to their car, how to fold up wheelchairs etc. Worthy things we will all agree on but then these are things that drivers ought to be up to spec with from the word go.

jhegarty

If you can pick an average person from the street and have them trained to do the job in a few hours its not skilled...

Pineapple stu

ninja900 wrote:

Fixed your post

Thanks, can you paint my gate too.:D

dRNk SAnTA

micmclo wrote:

What, it's the most highly skilled job in the country! Sure some drivers can manage the Irish soccer team, the Immigration Bureau (now, I'm not a racist but..) and Minister for Transport.
That's one person doing all these jobs :eek:

Ah no, I'd called it unskilled.

Now if Irish Drivers did something like The Knowledge like they do in London, I'd called it semi-skilled.
The Knowledge is a pretty cool accomplishment but no Irish taxi driver can claim to have somthing like that. In fact, all they do is pass a PSV test, it's not as if an apprenticeship is needed

So unskilled imo

Edit: I'd a quick look at www.taxi.ie.
Jaysus, it's like stormfront over there

Sorry to be OT but I just had a look at the forum in question and the amount of racism on that board is absolutely sickening. Talk about unskilled, some of the guys on there look like they could use another stint in junior school.

Davidth88

Oh my god , that forum makes me feel sick !

Taxi driving is not a skilled job. However many taxi drivers are skilled at their job , which is slightly different

meanmachine3

we all agree taxi drivers are worst offenders on our roads ,so why the hell aren't the guards or the government doing something to get the dangerous ones of the roads. after all a taxi plate is for
(1) driving in bus lanes with no passengers (illegal for taxi's)
(2) using bus stops as taxi ranks
(3) double parking /parking on double yellow line whilst doing shopping in shopping centres
(4) speeding
(5) cutting buses up which could lead to lots of serious injuries if braking distance not applied
the list is endless, basically everything your told not to do in the new rules of the road they do.
i'm sick and tired of these scumbags getting away with what they want, when drivers that have committed lesser offences are put of the road.
it's about time our government woke up.
years ago it was ok to drink and drive. now one pint and your off the road.
years ago it was ok for taxi drivers to drive what ever they like, now it's time for a change and close the loophole for good

Terrontress

meanmachine3 wrote:

we all agree taxi drivers are worst offenders on our roads ,so why the hell aren't the guards or the government doing something to get the dangerous ones of the roads. after all a taxi plate is for
(1) driving in bus lanes with no passengers (illegal for taxi's)
(2) using bus stops as taxi ranks
(3) double parking /parking on double yellow line whilst doing shopping in shopping centres
(4) speeding
(5) cutting buses up which could lead to lots of serious injuries if braking distance not applied
the list is endless, basically everything your told not to do in the new rules of the road they do.
i'm sick and tired of these scumbags getting away with what they want, when drivers that have committed lesser offences are put of the road.
it's about time our government woke up.
years ago it was ok to drink and drive. now one pint and your off the road.
years ago it was ok for taxi drivers to drive what ever they like, now it's time for a change and close the loophole for good

I think that given the amount of time they have behind the wheel, taxi drivers build a confidence. And then abuse their position on the road.

Half of the things they do; I'd be too frightened to do that in a car but they have done it so often they know they can get away with it.

As for Davidth88, has it taken that forum to make you realise that the good ol' Dublin taxi driving type is racist? I usually get it each time I take a journey with them. Even Des Bishop did a joke about it in one of his TV shows where he saw a Nigerian lady in her traditional dress. The taxi driver says "Look at that!", Des is about to say "Yeah, really nice; isn't it?" and the taxi driver says "Makes me sick. Those bastards get free washing machines and toothbrushes and we have to pay for it".

Screwthe unions

Looks like the boys on Taxi.ie found this thread...

the boss of me

As a taxi driver myself I am not going to say it is a skilled job. However it is semi-skilled and it is a responsible job. After all as a taxi driver you are responsible for the safety of up to eight passengers.
Also the OP seems to suggest that taxidrivers earn more than €40k. This is generally not the case and certainly not true if the driver works eight hour day shifts. In order to earn a taxable income of €40k a taxidriver would have to gross in the region of €65k. In order to gross €65 you would have to work 70 - 80 hrs per week.
So really I don't know what point the OP is trying to make. Taxi driving is not a skilled job but hey.... it doesn't pay like one.. so what's your point ??

Terrontress

Taxable Income!

Taxi drivers!

Don't make me laugh!

LegacyUser

Is taxi driving still an all cash business? I thought some taxi companies were enabling people to use plastic to pay??

damo

Unskilled, however like anything you have your good ones and your bad ones, and the good ones deserve credit.

The response and threats you received on their site was outrageous, but going into a taxi driver forum and basically rubbing it in their faces that they are working an unskilled job isnt very nice

LegacyUser

I think taxi drivers more or less relagated themselves to the level of opinion that alot of people have of them. I was in Portugal 2 weeks ago and used alot of taxis,but the drivers were so polite,didnt speak till spoke to,clean,smart cars,a joy.But here from my experiance is that they are mostly gobby,rude and opinionated.
I had a look at that site. Pretty nasty stuff.
There is alot of racist overtones alright.
OP,are you the same member on that site?

the boss of me

kaiser1 wrote:

Is taxi driving still an all cash business? I thought some taxi companies were enabling people to use plastic to pay??

About 80% of my work is a/c work and is paid straight into my bank a/c.

cast_iron

Screwthe unions wrote:

Looks like the boys on Taxi.ie found this thread...

And?

Anyway, taxi driving is in no way a skilled job. PSV licenses aren't hard to get, and, from what I have seen, I doubt most of them ever did a driving test.

OTK

It's a dangerous tiring job. It can be bad for your back, long hours. The stress of dealing with the public. Knowing that a lot of your customers look down on you.

There is dignity in labour, perhaps more so when it is unskilled.

Unskilled uneducated workers have more to fear from economic immigrants than the rest of us, so it's natural to find resentment.

Maybe taxi drivers would be happier if they accepted that their jobs are unskilled and tried to do them well rather than fantasizing all day that they are professors of white supremacy and urban mythology.

meanmachine3

OTK quote "It's a dangerous tiring job"
the only dangerous part is let taxi drivers get behind a wheel. all taxi drivers do is overtake and pray someone hits them from behind. basically they dont give a damn about anything or anyone except themselves.
OTK or the boss of me, i dont see either you denying or defending anything i said earlier.
i am sick and tired of taxi drivers thinking they are above the law. as i said before it's about time someone in this government woke up to the real world and did something.
I dont give a hoot what job taxi drivers do to think they are so special. there are thousands of other people driving for a living and you dont see them breaking THE LAW.

Victor

meanmachine3 wrote:

i am sick and tired of taxi drivers thinking they are above the law.

Can people tone it down a little? For every dodgy taxi driver out there, there is also a good one, who is a good driver, polite and helpful.

LegacyUser

I think we need to take a look back at the posts here... now tell me if dealing with muppets who make posts like that is not a skill?
Before you blow a fuse with your reply please include your job titles

I have a feeling most of you are yellow packs who work for somebody else?

How many of you work for yourself? 0? that many?

Victor

I've asked people to play nice. That works both ways. Other post moved.

the boss of me

meanmachine3 wrote:

we all agree taxi drivers are worst offenders on our roads ,so why the hell aren't the guards or the government doing something to get the dangerous ones of the roads. after all a taxi plate is for
(1) driving in bus lanes with no passengers (illegal for taxi's)
(2) using bus stops as taxi ranks
(3) double parking /parking on double yellow line whilst doing shopping in shopping centres
(4) speeding
(5) cutting buses up which could lead to lots of serious injuries if braking distance not applied
the list is endless, basically everything your told not to do in the new rules of the road they do.
i'm sick and tired of these scumbags getting away with what they want, when drivers that have committed lesser offences are put of the road.
it's about time our government woke up.
years ago it was ok to drink and drive. now one pint and your off the road.
years ago it was ok for taxi drivers to drive what ever they like, now it's time for a change and close the loophole for good

The reason I didn't address the issues you raised in your post is because it is off topic. It is basically an ill informed, bigoted rant aginst taxidrivers and wasn't worth replying to.

meanmachine3

my use of the word " scumbags " was excessive .do you not understand why most of the population hate taxi drivers?all the things i pointed out happen all the time and i just want to know why do taxi drivers do these things. why are they immune from the rules of the road.
if taxi drivers obeyed the law like we all do then , we would'nt be where we are today ( everyone complaing about their driving)

Ham'nd'egger

meanmachine3 wrote:

my use of the word " scumbags " was excessive .do you not understand why most of the population hate taxi drivers?all the things i pointed out happen all the time and i just want to know why do taxi drivers do these things. why are they immune from the rules of the road.
if taxi drivers obeyed the law like we all do then , we would'nt be where we are today ( everyone complaing about their driving)

So what you are saying is that I (Who is a taxi driver) am a bad driver and that I break the law.

meanmachine3

i dont know you so i cannot comment on you personally.but 99% of taxi drivers that i have seen out there in the city dont obey the rules of the road, as i have already pointed out in my examples.more include GOING STARIGHT in LEFT and RIGHT hand turns only.
i am expressing my own opinion like everyone else of this site.

Vmaxer

meanmachine3 wrote:

i dont know you so i cannot comment on you personally.but 99% of taxi drivers that i have seen out there in the city dont obey the rules of the road, as i have already pointed out in my examples.more include GOING STARIGHT in LEFT and RIGHT hand turns only.
i am expressing my own opinion like everyone else of this site.

If that was the case they would not be long about accumulating 12 penalty points and would no longer be driving Taxi's, after all Taxi Drivers are not exempt from the Law..

I Myself have been a full time Taxi Driver for 11 Years and have no penalty points nor any accidents in that time.. I'm sure that must require some sort of skill or is it just luck..