100 Irish taxi drivers protesting outside regulators office

ElBarco

Good news everyone - we're all allowed park in taxi ranks for the rest of the week.

If anyone says anything tell them it's a protest and all will be fine

Mark200

ElBarco wrote: »

Good news everyone - we're all allowed park in taxi ranks for the rest of the week.

If anyone says anything tell them it's a protest and all will be fine

:pac:

One thing that does annoy me about protests in general is this: how do you show disapproval when driving past? Instinct would be to beep your horn out of annoyance or frustration, but it seems these days that that's what you're expected to do to show approval! Any ideas other than running them over or giving them the finger*?

*May be willing to resort to the latter

neil_18_

Mark200 wrote: »

:pac:

One thing that does annoy me about protests in general is this: how do you show disapproval when driving past? Instinct would be to beep your horn out of annoyance or frustration, but it seems these days that that's what you're expected to do to show approval! Any ideas other than running them over or giving them the finger*?

*May be willing to resort to the latter

+

+

KoolKid

Spook_ie wrote: »

Define part timers, it's easy to stop the PAYE part time workers, just do as in France, if you're a taxi driver you're a taxi driver, not a schoolteacher,fireman,soldier whatever supplementing an already grossly overpaid salary

You really have a massive chip on your shoulder spook.
Last time I checked its not illegal for anyone to have more than one job in this country. In the current climate more & more people are going to be double jobbing. Fair play to them out working all hours to make ends meet.
Maybe some taxi drivers should try it. Then again there is not much demand for unskilled labour at the moment. However, all the jobs you mentioned Fireman, Teacher Soldier are skilled hence thier "grossly overpaid salary" (Your opinion, not mine!)
You really think the whole world is against you , spook. Wake up to the free market . You are self employed ,its up to you to get out & make your business viable. No other business deserves protection from competition, taxi drivers are no different.

projectmayhem

Spook_ie wrote: »

More like shows their desperation, I would have said

Blocking the LUAS from passing by on O'Connell street is not a cry for help from this country - it's absolute scumbagery.

These tossers held the city to ransom already - here we go again. They're protesting their own industry. Who the hell are they protesting to? The people of Dublin (and whatever other cities have protests on) have nothing to do with this...

arybvtcw0eolkf

Spook_ie wrote: »

Taxi Swords to Balbriggan ( near new Dunnes ) €35 at nightrate, 4 people €8.50 each, allow for a tenner each for the extra stops, not bad value for a service at 3 or 4 A.M Door to door

I'd actually say that's exceptional value.

One Six One news, O'Connell St is totally blocked and all traffic is being diverted away from the area.

Self defeating IMO, people are still very sore after the last time this happened but I guess desparate times calls for desparate measure's.

MementoMori

Exceptional own-goal by the taxi drivers again.

It takes some effort to make the current government, the side that has the overwhelming support of the public, in any debate but the taxi-drivers have managed it.

Clearly whoever is behind organising this protest doesn't really have much of a clue of how the real world operates given that this protest makes it even less likely that there will be a return to pre-deregulation cartel days.

Personally I'm massively in favour of increased part-timers who are showing ambition and drive by double-jobbing as opposed to those you seem to think that driving a taxi is an actual viable long-term "career".

KoolKid

MementoMori wrote: »

Exceptional own-goal by the taxi drivers again.

Do you mean blocking O Connell Street or just the mere stupidity of a self employed person going on strike?

MementoMori wrote: »

Personally I'm massively in favour of increased part-timers who are showing ambition and drive by double-jobbing as opposed to those you seem to think that driving a taxi is an actual viable long-term "career".

Couldn't agree more, If taxi drivers had thier way double jobbing would be outlawed.

skelliser

This one word sums up taxi drivers:




SCUM

MementoMori

koolkid wrote: »

Do you mean blocking O Connell Street or just the mere stupidity of a self employed person going on strike?


Couldn't agree more, If taxi drivers had thier way double jobbing would be outlawed.

Pretty much the entire campaign could be described as full of fail.
From the news reports it was a case of met the regulator, didn't like what was said so threw a strop in response. Doesn't sound like any effort whatsoever was made to act like grown-ups, but was simply a case of all toys out of the pram type response. Made no effort to put forward a case of why taxi drivers should be treated as a special case or act in a manner anyway consistent with an understanding of how the real world operates. Was there anything anyway realistic in the way of proposals put forward?

Even aside from the issue of self-employed people going on strike, by blocking O'Connell Street, they are actively making it easier for the Minister to tell them to f.uck off - chances are that any Minister who brought back in a cap on taxi numbers would lose a lot of votes in a general election.

Mark200

Spook_ie wrote: »

Define part timers, it's easy to stop the PAYE part time workers, just do as in France, if you're a taxi driver you're a taxi driver, not a schoolteacher,fireman,soldier whatever supplementing an already grossly overpaid salary

Actually now that I think about it, why on Earth would there be part-timers if things are as bad as taxi drivers claim?!? If someone has a job already, are they really going to go through the stories taxi drivers tell? According to 2qk4u, he earned €12 for 13 hours work last week after expenses.... if someone has a part time job, are they really going to do that?

Redzer7

skelliser wrote: »

This one word sums up taxi drivers:




SCUM

:rolleyes:, Stereo typing much?

ball ox

I've never had a problem with taxi drivers or the service that they provide. On average I would get a taxi 3 or 4 times a month, generally a tenner each time.

As of today I will be getting the bus.

Just wanted to post that for any taxi drivers out there. You have lost a (previously) happy customer and I sincerely doubt I am the only person out there who has made this decision today.

Nobody has the right to bring a city to a stand still to draw attention to their needs.

Ironically enough, if it were anyone else blocking the streets who do you think would be doing the most giving out :rolleyes:

MementoMori

Mark200 wrote: »

Actually now that I think about it, why on Earth would there be part-timers if things are as bad as taxi drivers claim?!? If someone has a job already, are they really going to go through the stories taxi drivers tell? According to 2qk4u, he earned €12 for 13 hours work last week after expenses.... if someone has a part time job, are they really going to do that?

Ssssh ......logic has no place here.

Alternatively taxi drivers are doing there dammdest to reduce competition from part-timers....Can anyone guess what I believe?

KoolKid

Mark200 wrote: »

Actually now that I think about it, why on Earth would there be part-timers if things are as bad as taxi drivers claim?!? If someone has a job already, are they really going to go through the stories taxi drivers tell? According to 2qk4u, he earned €12 for 13 hours work last week after expenses.... if someone has a part time job, are they really going to do that?

No You have it all wrong. The part timers are making all the money :rolleyes:, so there is none left for the full timers.
Maybe the partimers are better taxi drivers.
2qk4u would have make€22 had he not squandered €10 on a car wash.:rolleyes:

skelliser

Redzer7 wrote: »

:rolleyes:, Stereo typing much?

no im not.

if i block the road like they have done on o'connell street and elsewhere i would be arrested and my car removed. simple as.

bigjohnny80

I just asked a garda on oconnell street why they weren't arrested. I thought he might have some sympathy towards commuters, instead he just said they are entitled to protest.

gurramok

This is what Seville place westbound in Dublin was like this evening(Amiens st was the same) due to the heroic:rolleyes: taxi driver blockage in other areas.

How on earth would the taxi drivers get support from the travelling public stuck like this as a result of their actions?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAXM5IsnOd8

DonJose

Redzer7 wrote: »

:rolleyes:, Stereo typing much?

That stereotype hits the nail on th head...

http://irishtaxi.org/forum/index.php?topic=4860.0

"Fook the public, fook the regulator, fook the authorities." Nice!!!

I hope the SCUMBAGS who blocked off the traffic today and made it a nightmare for the public have their cars seized and scrap, pack of SCUMBAGS

http://photos4.pix.ie/EB/16/EB163D3097094C9D8A2A874C1E36DF47.jpg

MementoMori

bigjohnny80 wrote: »

I just asked a garda on oconnell street why they weren't arrested. I thought he might have some sympathy towards commuters, instead he just said they are entitled to protest.

Should have asked him if the general public are entitled to parkprotest in a similar manner on O'Connell Street?

Redzer7

DonJose2 wrote: »

That stereotype hits the nail on th head...

Don't put them all in the same basket!!

Thats just like saying all nurses are scum because some of them are filthy fcukers, Saying all Garda are scum because some are corrupt.
Grow up.

Pal

when did taxi driving become an industry ?

No sympathy here.
I remember the days they screwed us up the jacksie.

Went to town. Got stranded. Walked for miles.
every bloody week.

Now they hijack the streets.

GTF

Here's a solution Minister.
Give out more licenses to people who will use them.

Spook_ie

koolkid wrote: »

You really have a massive chip on your shoulder spook.
Last time I checked its not illegal for anyone to have more than one job in this country. In the current climate more & more people are going to be double jobbing. Fair play to them out working all hours to make ends meet.
Maybe some taxi drivers should try it. Then again there is not much demand for unskilled labour at the moment. However, all the jobs you mentioned Fireman, Teacher Soldier are skilled hence thier "grossly overpaid salary" (Your opinion, not mine!)
You really think the whole world is against you , spook. Wake up to the free market . You are self employed ,its up to you to get out & make your business viable. No other business deserves protection from competition, taxi drivers are no different.

No I don't actualy have a chip on my shoulder, I just believe that people who have a full time job shouldn't be allowed out to do another job that entails driving some 2 tons of metal, it's a regretable situation that some taxi drivers are finding they themselves are having to effectively work more hours than are sensible ( or legal ) to try and surrvive whereas a majority ( if not all ) of the part timers are doing it to supplement a salary that they can easily exist on and are doing it to provide luxeries for their lifestyle rather than the essentials I am trying to provide. The only problem I foresee would be trying to differentiate between those that are doing the taxiing to supplement their luxeries and those that are supplementing their meagre lifestyle.

Maybe people with a full time job should be means tested before allowing them to have a taxi license, I might surmise from your attitude that you are or know some part time taximen and that's why you are so vociferous in your defence of them

THEDONWALDO

I have no sympathy whatsoever for those reprobates who have taken upon themselves to block up the main streets of dublin and other cities in the country. During the boom they cleaned up and the customer was literally taken for a ride. Now that there is a bit of competition they are up in arms..get a damn life!! You made the decision to drive a taxi,no-one did it for you.

sdanseo

Taxi drivers that are blocking the main street of the city without notice during rush hour should be arrested, jailed indefinately and have their cars crushed, then a massive fine to boot.

There is no excuse for holding up an entire city of people just because you have a problem. Go on strike by all means, or sit in the regulator's office, burn a few taxi-regulator logos in public or some such. But what they did and are doing is utterly unacceptable.

Pure and simple scumbag bastards the lot of them (bearing in mind the taxi driver I got today had no idea what was going on, I refer only to the ones causing trouble).

Gardaí, I beg of you - jail these idiot NOW!

Coriolanus

Spook_ie wrote: »

No I don't actualy have a chip on my shoulder, I just believe that people who have a full time job shouldn't be allowed out to do another job that entails driving some 2 tons of metal, it's a regretable situation that some taxi drivers are finding they themselves are having to effectively work more hours than are sensible ( or legal ) to try and surrvive whereas a majority ( if not all ) of the part timers are doing it to supplement a salary that they can easily exist on and are doing it to provide luxeries for their lifestyle rather than the essentials I am trying to provide. The only problem I foresee would be trying to differentiate between those that are doing the taxiing to supplement their luxeries and those that are supplementing their meagre lifestyle.

Maybe people with a full time job should be means tested before allowing them to have a taxi license, I might surmise from your attitude that you are or know some part time taximen and that's why you are so vociferous in your defence of them

Why just taxis though? There are plenty of jobs where there are part timers and full timers working side by side.

Bar work comes to mind. I've worked in a bar part time while working full time, when the full time wasn't enough to make ends meet.
So woyuld you impose similar restrictions on bar work?

Slideshowbob

watched them on the news

who do they think they are - did they think when they became taxi men they were guaranteed a good wage for life

get real u greed merchants

its disgraceful they can block up the city over 2 guys protesting

myflipflops

There was the same protest on O'Connel street the same day I emigrated to find meaningful work in October. Reading about it again happening today annoys me again.

I've actually always found taxi drivers in Dublin to be decent enough people to deal with on the whole. Certainly no more or no less w**kers doing it than any other job. There are plenty of racist/ignorant people walking about. You just rarely get stuck in a car with them in silence when they are accountants/nurses/gardeners/builders etc etc.

What gets me is what is being sought by them. Drivers, from what i can see, are looking for barriers (end the issue of licenses) to entry to the industry without offering anything back in return. De-regulation of the licenses means that as un-skilled labor, no real barriers to entry exist. Sould full time construction labourers be protesting about part time workers? What about bar men? What full time, committed drivers may get a more sympathetic ear about is if they make very specific proposals that the public may agree with.

These could include:

- A very stringent knowledge test to earn a license. This would result in the service offered becoming better across the board. It would also block those incapable of doing the job properly.

- Strict rules about the quality/type of cars. I'm not sure what the rules currently are but introducing strict laws and regular checks about the cars. Maybe introduce an environmental aspect to it where fuel efficient taxis are encouraged in some way.


Just 2 random ideas off the top of my head and only using them as an example.

Where this protest is falling down is in it's organisation. It is doing nothing but annoying the public and pushing public opinion against them. Most people have no idea of the details of what is being demanded. The leadership of these protest needs to be overhauled and replaced with people who have some semblance of how to go about conducting a labour dispute. Until this happens, it's going nowhere.

I have sympathy for all genuine individual people struggling to make a living, pay a mortgage or feed their kids in this climate. That very much includes individual taxi drivers like some posting on this thread. What i have no sympathy whatsoever is the taxi INDUSTRY as a whole, mainly due to the way they are going about their business. The point they are getting across (even if it's not the point they mean to be making) is that they have a divine right to make a living and everyone else can go f**k themselves.

End rant.

Danbo!

Can we assume that all taxi drivers are involved in this ****ing bull****? Just want to know if slowing my driving to 20kph tonight any time a taxi was behind me was justified (if no-one was behind them!), and whether I should block bus lanes tomorrow morning?

Really sick of this crap, 2 years ago I had to walk 11km home from town if I ever went out because of lack of taxis. Now there is so many, that at 2am on a Saturday you have to sit in rush-hour style traffic in the city centre. Since the last protest, I've just walked home from town after a night out. I've done it before plenty of times, saves me €20, it sobers me up nicely and no hangover the next day. I also don't feel too bad about stuffing a massive burger into me after the pub before the walk.

Coriolanus

myflipflops wrote: »

- Strict rules about the quality/type of cars. I'm not sure what the rules currently are but introducing strict laws and regular checks about the cars. Maybe introduce an environmental aspect to it where fuel efficient taxis are encouraged in some way.

This is one of the things they're protesting about, believe it or not. :pac: Thye think it's unreasonable to have to have a car no more than nine years old.

Spook_ie

Nevore wrote: »

Why just taxis though? There are plenty of jobs where there are part timers and full timers working side by side.

Bar work comes to mind. I've worked in a bar part time while working full time, when the full time wasn't enough to make ends meet.
So woyuld you impose similar restrictions on bar work?

That's upto the barworkers, if I was a fulltime barworker I'd have the same view, especialy if it meant I was getting a reduction in my wages

myflipflops

Spook_ie wrote: »

That's upto the barworkers, if I was a fulltime barworker I'd have the same view, especialy if it meant I was getting a reduction in my wages

The idea of banning people from working a second job part time is completely against the countries economic ideals and probably not enforceable in law.

A part time taxi driver would almost certainly have legal re-course under competition laws if it was brought in that simply.

You (full time drivers) need to come up with a scenario where preferential treatment for full time drivers is good for the industry as a whole and for the public. In my opinion, it's not a valid arguement to the regulator when it's just a matter of being detrimental to the incomes of full time drivers.

Coriolanus

Spook_ie wrote: »

That's upto the barworkers, if I was a fulltime barworker I'd have the same view, especialy if it meant I was getting a reduction in my wages

So, basically, your desired world would see everyone, except those who are poor enough to qualify, can only work in one job?

Spook_ie

myflipflops wrote: »

The idea of banning people from working a second job part time is completely against the countries economic ideals and probably not enforceable in law.

A part time taxi driver would almost certainly have legal re-course under competition laws if it was brought in that simply.

You (full time drivers) need to come up with a scenario where preferential treatment for full time drivers is good for the industry as a whole and for the public. In my opinion, it's not a valid arguement to the regulator when it's just a matter of being detrimental to the incomes of full time drivers.

Which would you rather use?

1 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40 hours in a job and then dashed out on Friday/Saturday night to hit the rush, when they should be resting

2 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40/60 hours in a taxi who still has to work more hours on the Friday/Saturday nights to make ends meet

3 A taxi bring driven by someone who hasn't yet clocked up 40/60 hours and is still fit enough to take you on your journey home

Spook_ie

Nevore wrote: »

So, basically, your desired world would see everyone, except those who are poor enough to qualify, can only work in one job?

No I would say my desired world would be that those who are poor enough to qualify would be given the requisite assistance to help them out of the poverty trap, the problem is that the so called boom years have bred an indifferent society where greed is good

Danbo!

Spook_ie wrote: »

Which would you rather use?

1 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40 hours in a job and then dashed out on Friday/Saturday night to hit the rush, when they should be resting

2 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40/60 hours in a taxi who still has to work more hours on the Friday/Saturday nights to make ends meet

3 A taxi bring driven by someone who hasn't yet clocked up 40/60 hours and is still fit enough to take you on your journey home

4 A bus which is usually 10% of the price

Coriolanus

I'd like to be able to use a taxi full stop. Restricting the plates in as severe a manner as you're suggesting would bring us back to the bad old days where you could be stranded without any hope of a taxi for hours.

I don't see how the evil part timer is being greedy. They're working for the money they earn, in two different jobs no less. That's so far from being greedy that it's almost laughable to even use the word.

Ste.phen

RE: Blocking O' Connell St:
If they're not in the car, crush their clearly abandoned car into a cube and bill them for storage.
If they're in the car, they're deliberately obstructing traffic - arrest them then follow the steps above

Spook_ie

Stee wrote: »

4 A bus which is usually 10% of the price

A bus won't take you door to door unless you happen to be lucky enough to live next to a bus stop, so don't be smart

Danbo!

Spook_ie wrote: »

A bus won't take you door to door unless you happen to be lucky enough to live next to a bus stop, so don't be smart

Not being smart. With my 90% change Ill gladly walk 10-15 minutes each end of the journey to/from a bus stop.

darragh16

Its funny how most of the drivers protesting are the ones who, by getting a taxi plate, are making the job even harder....

AARRRRGH

I saw 2 Jag taxis there today (a 2008 one and a 2009 one). Obviously they arent all finding it hard to make a living.

ElBarco

Spook_ie wrote: »

A bus won't take you door to door unless you happen to be lucky enough to live next to a bus stop, so don't be smart

A bus driver wont try and blockade the city because they're unhappy with someone.

They may withdraw their labour (and we all know it's a pain in the ass when they do..) but they don't actively try and shut down cities.

Spook_ie

Nevore wrote: »

I'd like to be able to use a taxi full stop. Restricting the plates in as severe a manner as you're suggesting would bring us back to the bad old days where you could be stranded without any hope of a taxi for hours.

I don't see how the evil part timer is being greedy. They're working for the money they earn, in two different jobs no less. That's so far from being greedy that it's almost laughable to even use the word.

Might I ask when the last time you went out on a midweek night was and did you notice a lack of taxis? Most part timers aren't out midweek so you should be able to guage the oversupply of full time taxis, there wouldn't seem to be a requisite for part timers other than their greed

myflipflops

Spook_ie wrote: »

Which would you rather use?

1 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40 hours in a job and then dashed out on Friday/Saturday night to hit the rush, when they should be resting

2 A taxi being driven by someone who has worked 40/60 hours in a taxi who still has to work more hours on the Friday/Saturday nights to make ends meet

3 A taxi bring driven by someone who hasn't yet clocked up 40/60 hours and is still fit enough to take you on your journey home

I'm not arguing against the fact that it would be a good thing for specific customers. In terms of service, it's nearly always a good thing to deal with full timers as naturally they should be better and more capable at the job. It doesn't mean you can ban part timers though.

My point is that as an industry, you are going about it in the wrong manner and completely failing to get any valid points across. Convince people that your cause is valid and then put forward a solution that fits in with the economic and legal climate in this country.

Right now, the way it's being handled, the protest has no just cause for going in as it is and rightly or wrongly, it has no hope of achieving anything. It's nearly 100% impossible to result in anything except create traffic problems in Dublin.

Coriolanus

AARRRRGH wrote: »

I saw 2 Jag taxis there today (a 2008 one and a 2009 one). Obviously they arent all finding it hard to make a living.

That's another thing that bugs the hell out of me about the taxis. If I want to get the Merc that three cars back rather than the dusty looking Corolla that's first, I don't see what the problem is. I'd definitely plum for the Jag!

Spook_ie wrote: »

Might I ask when the last time you went out on a midweek night was and did you notice a lack of taxis? Most part timers aren't out midweek so you should be able to guage the oversupply of full time taxis, there wouldn't seem to be a requisite for part timers other than their greed

I'm talking about before dereg, when it could be a Friday/Saturday night and you couldn't get a taxi for love nor money.

Spook_ie

I never said I approved of today's protest, in fact I'm not even sure what the protest is actualy about ( and that's a first! )

Spook_ie

Nevore wrote: »

That's another thing that bugs the hell out of me about the taxis. If I want to get the Merc that three cars back rather than the dusty looking Corolla that's first, I don't see what the problem is. I'd definitely plum for the Jag!

So you wouldn't have a problem paying a higher rate to the driver of the Jag or the Merc then? seeing as you have a preference

KoolKid

Spook_ie wrote: »

I just believe that people who have a full time job shouldn't be allowed out to do another job

But thats thier right. Who are you to interfere with that right.
Can some taxi driver please explain why these partimers are bothering if its so hard to make any money.

Andrew33 wrote: »

The only problem I foresee would be trying to differentiate between those that are doing the taxiing to supplement their luxeries and those that are supplementing their meagre lifestyle.

Again none of your business what they do a second job for.

Coriolanus

Spook_ie wrote: »

So you wouldn't have a problem paying a higher rate to the driver of the Jag or the Merc then? seeing as you have a preference

Probably not no. Especially since if one was allowed to pick and choose the car one took, the better cars would earn substantially more and recieve substantially more clients, resulting in the extra cost being spread over a much greater client base.
I probably wouldn't actually end up paying all that more for the priveledge!

As it is now, taxi drivers have no market incentive to keep themselves or the car in any particular condition, other than the mild admonition to keep themselves "presentable" and their car "clean and roadworthy".