Cab Trade News / Winter 2012

Produced by

WORKING TAXI DRIVERS belonging to THE CAMPAIGNING PAPER FOR THE LICENSED TAXI TRADE

SAVE OUR

Cab Section

WINTER 2012 Special Edition

Sponsored by

BLACK

CABS The meter is running on the future of the iconic black cab. Financial difficulties mean Britain's only black cab manufacturer, Manganese Bronze, based in Coventry, could collapse or black cabs could even end up being manufactured abroad.

The black cab is part of Britain's manufacturing heritage and part of our national fabric, like Big Ben, or fish and chips but now they could disappear from our roads.

We are urging Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC), the administrators managing the sale of the company's assets, to ensure that any potential buyer commits to manufacturing black cabs in the UK. It is unthinkable that the historic black cab could be built anywhere else but in the UK. Unite which represents the laid-off workers at Manganese Bronze and black cab drivers, is campaigning to save the black cab and have them built in Britain.

The workers and the cabbies need your support.

Join us in urging PWC and any potential buyer to keep manufacturing in Coventry and the black cab on the road.

A British icon should be built in Britain.

A British icon should be built in Britain

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 2

London Taxi Company Workers Rally Support in Coventry

Unite Regional officer Peter Coulson with LTC redundant workers in Coventry city centre. Picture from the Coventry Telegraph. coventrytelegraph.net

As part of Unite’s Save Our Black Cabs campaign, Unite union officers and London Taxi Company workers who lost their jobs when parent company Manganese Bronze went into administration handed out leaflets in Broadgate Coventry recently, asking local people to support their campaign to keep the firm in the city.

Unite is urging PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the administrators for Manganese Bronze and any potential buyer to keep manufacturing in Coventry and the iconic black cab on the road. The campaign is supported by Unite Cab Section members as well as local MP Labour MP Bob Ainsworth and Coventry City Councilor Bally Singh.

On the day of the Coventry event, Peter Coulson, regional officer for Unite the Union, told the Coventry Telegraph that he was overwhelmed by the level of support in Broadgate. He said: “The response from the public has been absolutely tremendous. The message is that it’s an iconic product and that its production should remain in Britain, in Coventry.

We have been astonished by the amount

of support that we have received from the general public.

Coventry City Councilor Bally Singh, said: ‘‘We should have the same support for the black cab industry here in Coventry that other countries show for their own industries.’’

“The aim of the event is to encourage people to support the Unite campaign and sign our petition on Facebook which asks the administrators to do everything possible to encourage any potential buyer to commit the black cab is built in Coventry.”

Join the campaign at www.facebook.com/ SaveOurBlackCabs.

As well as the Facebook campaign Unite has set up an on-line petition to register support. The petition can be found in the campaign section of the Unite website www.unitetheunion.org, by following the links from the SaveOurBlackCabs Facebook page or the CTN Wordpress site, www.cabtradenews.co.uk

As fear grows about the future of the Black Cab, London Taxi Company Administrators announce steering box fix.

November brought a little good news for the drivers forced off the ranks by the TX4 recall, when on the 15th PwC the administrators for Manganese Bronze Holdings announced that a fix had been found for the TX4 steering box fault that had triggered the vehicle recall and ultimately forced LTC to call in administrators Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC).

In the PwC announcement, Matthew Hammond, joint administrator and PwC partner, said: “I am pleased to be able to report that the company’s employees will be part of a massive effort to begin fitting the new UK-supplied steering box to the recalled fleet within the next 48 hours.

Having secured replacement parts for the entire recalled fleet, the programme to fit these new components has been devised so that all recalled fleet cars will be fitted with new replacement parts by mid-December.

“I fully appreciate the difficulties that the recall has created for individual taxi drivers, fleet operators, dealers and availability of taxis in the London black cab market. I hope that within a matter of weeks we will have addressed the main difficulties faced by drivers and the under-supply of vehicles to the London black cab market. We are working to get taxis back on the road as quickly as possible but clearly, with the large number of vehicles affected in London and also in the regions, this work will take several weeks to complete.

“The support of the Group’s management, employees and unions has been outstanding and a critical factor in getting to this stage. We are grateful for their ongoing support and resolve, and we all remain focused on securing the future of the company.”

Cab Trade News understands that the UK supplied steering box has been manufactured

by Adwest Engineering LTD. Although this is good news for affected drivers it still doesn’t offer any comfort for the

London Taxi Company staff that find themselves out off work as a result of the company’s collapse or the fear that the iconic London taxi could end up being made aboard.

Len McCluskey, Unite General Secretary

Len McCluskey, Unite General Secretary said: “It is unthinkable that the historic black cab could be built anywhere else but in the UK. Unfortunately there is a real possibility that this could happen.

Financial difficulties mean Britain’s only black cab manufacturer, Manganese Bronze, based in Coventry has gone into administration.

We are urging Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC), the administrators managing the sale of the company’s assets, to ensure that any potential buyer commits to manufacturing black cabs in the UK. London needs its purpose-built black cab and Britain needs a home grown manufacturing sector. Over the coming weeks Unite will be stepping up its campaign to urge PwC and any potential buyer to keep manufacturing in Coventry and the black cab on the road. We are urging black cab drivers from across the country to support our campaign because a British icon should be built in Britain.’’

Driving Growth, a Unite strategy for the motor industry starts on page 7.

Good news for drivers with cabs off the road because of the recall, but still no solution to the problem of the trade’s rental cab shortage at our busiest time of year.

In London the United Trade Group, UNITE, LCDC & LTDA has again appealed to the Mayors office to relax the 15 year age limit for taxis. Because even after the reworked steering boxes have been fitted to the stricken

TX4’s there will still be a shortage of cabs to rent or buy.

Whilst that situation continues, many licensed taxi drivers will be unable to work, which will leave the vulnerable even more exposed to the dangers of the illegal trade. Just a short moratorium on the London age limit policy will see more people taking safe licensed taxis and give the London black cab’s new owners the time needed to get the company back on its wheels.

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 4

CTN Comment

Reasonable Consultation

By FRANK HULL As a body representing the taxi trade in this country we have always argued that consultation has to be the best way forward for everyone involved in taxis.

By everyone we mean administrators, users, drivers and operators. However; many of those administrators across the country use their own interpretation of the word consultation and in many places consultation is ignored altogether and replaced with an authoritarian attitude to matters relating to local taxi trades.

One of the most powerful words in taxi law is” reasonable”. It is in fact case law that no consultation, on conditions, with a local taxi trade is unreasonable and therefore any controversial condition imposed, without consultation, must be illegal. It is obvious then that these illegal conditions must be challenged in consultation or even through the courts.

Across the country local trades are having more taxis licensed even though work has fallen. These extra taxis are introduced despite a shortage of rank space. Ok a local authority will tell us confidently that they do not have to take rank spaces into consideration when they licence more taxis. We know that this view is unreasonable. Think what this inconsideration has brought and does bring about? Taxis hanging off the end of ranks, the setting up of illegal ranks, tension between authority and taxi drivers. Ask any Cambridge taxi driver about the problems they have had for several years now because of this unreasonable condition imposed on their trade.

In many areas more taxis are introduced regardless of any traffic congestion and in some areas the increase in pollution that will occur.

Castle Point in Essex is imposing an unreasonable condition, without reasonable consultation, on drivers who have reached that mystical age SIXTY FIVE. From then on they must take a driving test and thereafter every three years.

Derby County Council has set up a partnership with its local taxi trade. The first meeting has been held. We will be interested to see the developing results of this partnership that we wish well.

From 9th November Stansted Airport introduced a £2 levy to enable us to drop off a fare. When asked why it had introduced this fee it stated that it was to encourage travellers to use public services. Stansted Airport is obviously unaware that the taxi trade in this country has for several years been endorsed as an essential part of the public transport service.

A word of warning to those drivers who are dropping off at one of the airports that has introduced this charge, make sure your fare does not leave your taxi before the official drop off point or you may find to your cost, like one unlucky Harlow taxi driver. His fare got out of the taxi before the drop zone in Luton Airport. This act was caught on CCTV and of course it was the driver who had to pay the massive sixty pound fine. We wonder if Luton also introduced this fee to encourage travellers to use public transport, if it did then perhaps the Harlow driver will have his sixty pounds returned when Luton learns that taxis are part of the public transport service in this country. Don’t hold your breath.

If you think your area has been subjected to unreasonable conditions, challenge them!

Why not UNITE with us and challenge them together.

Fill in the application on Page 15.

Frank Hull is a UNITE Cab Trade Committee Member.

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WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 5

Peter J Rose

JOIN THE

Secretary UNITE Cab Section, London Branch

Recently I was alerted to a story in our local newspaper the Woodford Recorder. It was reporting on the situation at the Queen Mary’s Gate development of residential apartments, which is just off the High Road in South Woodford, it is also opposite nightclub Funky Mojoe.

It seems that the residents are unhappy because they are being plagued by minicabs parking in the road leading up to the development. The minicabs are there waiting to be called over by the Clipboard-less Johnnies that marshal them at the club.

Residents say that if there was a fire, emergency services would struggle to access the development. They add that even normal access to the flats is hindered by the parked minicabs and when they complain the drivers just ignore them.

One resident has started a petition to stop the minicabs from parking there. I wonder how they would feel if they knew that the reason for the minicabs being there is because TfL, the police and Redbridge Council put them there.

The minicabs were put there as a result of complaints put forward by UNITE, of the obvious touting and the illegal ranking by minicabs directly outside Funky Mojoe and other venues in the area.

South Woodford was visited twice by this union, both times with the Deputy Director of London Taxi and Private Hire and what we found there has been well documented within the pages of this newspaper. I’m not going to weary you dear reader of details about non compliant minicabs that you have read many times before.

Suffice it to say that following those visits the solution to the problem was agreed to be: That a licensed taxi rank should be established at Funky Mojoe and the rank in George Lane is extended to bring taxis closer to two more venues located there. These proposals had the enthusiastic support of the local, suburban drivers. Action was also to be taken against the minicab firm because of the way they were operating there.

Now it would seem that these proposals have been shelved, there is still no taxi rank at Funky Mojoe, the ranks in George Lane haven’t been extended, but rather the minicabs have been moved to a less prominent position of Queen Mary’s Gate which are now causing problems for the residents. Out of sight out of mind one thinks, a no cost option for Transport for London and Redbridge Council and yet

another Problem Solving Solution for the Met Police. And no action taken with the way the minicab operator handles bookings either.

Speaking of Problem Solving Policing, It can’t go un-noticed that TfL have lost their appeal against Diamond Cars, which operate out of the Abacus club in Cornhill.

The case seemed to revolve around as to what is ‘in’ the premises and to what is ‘at’ the premises, in, at, in, at, do the hokey cokey and throw the case out! You couldn’t make this stuff up I hear someone shouting.

Point is that this sort of let off for the minicab trade is happening, if it could, more and more. It looks to have become impossible to get a revocation of licence.

Back in February TfL lost another case on appeal because it was felt that a licence revocation would be too severe for the offending operator. This was despite the fact that TfL could show and the Judge agreed that there had been serious breeches of the terms of licence by the operator and at one venue where they were taking bookings they didn’t actually have an operator’s licence. The judge was more concerned that a revocation or even a prolonged suspension would in effect mean the loss of the business.

The Judge also noted that the police wanted this operator licensed, because they, (the police), had approached them (the operator) about setting up satellite offices in their area. Why was this done? It was done as a Police Problem Solving Solution to illegal touting in the area. Again you couldn’t make this stuff up. The Judge suspended the operators licence for seven days.

That’ll show’em!

As a final note you can’t feel but touched at the way the Judge was concerned about the loss of the operators business and work the drivers would suffer if their licence to operate had been revoked. Such a shame that like, the Law Commission he didn’t seem at all concerned about the loss of trade the licensed taxi trade suffers when operators are allowed to get away with their misdemeanours.

The Law Commission say that ‘’it is no concern of theirs if taxi drivers go out of business’’. Even more worrying is that the Law Commission is sounding very favourable to the ideas being put forward by the private hire trade.

Be seeing you ;-) @peterjrose1

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To apply, please complete the application form on Page 11

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 6

Street Legal

By VICTORIA PHILLIPS

Press Releases – Entertaining?

Company press releases can be entertaining reading. It’s the way they present opinions as facts and use survey statistics without explaining the methodology to try to sell a product.

A recent one issued by a firm that supplies electronic credit card equipment free to the licensed taxi trade, told how demand by customers for card payments has reached “an all time high”. It quoted a Barclaycard survey which found that “61% of people prefer using cards over cash to buy items up to the value of £20” while “84% recognise the contactless ‘wave’ symbol”.

Its point being that taxi drivers should get with the times and embrace the technology. This is part of the campaign to make drivers accept payment by credit card. The firm went on to caution about the future of the London taxi trade if drivers don’t.

With contactless payments coming online in public transport, it would be “inexcusable to sit by and let [the loss of business to public transport] happen, especially as the facility has been available to every taxi driver and fleet in London for over a year.”

There are good reasons why many Unite members are reluctant to accept credit card machines in their cabs, not least the pressure that is being applied on them to do so. While it may be right that a mainly cashless cab is a safer cab, and that many customers prefer them, the government’s proposed ban on excessive surcharges on credit cards will make some drivers nervous that free machines will be unsustainable. But there is also the more fundamental issue.

Credit cards are not legal tender. Legal tender has a very specific meaning and, in England and Wales, describes coins and Bank of England bank notes which should not be refused by anyone.

There is no obligation to accept credit or debit cards.

No trader is obliged to enter into a contract. If you don’t like the look of someone’s money you don’t have to agree to sell them something. And once you have agreed, the only money you have to accept is legal tender (unless the cash appears to be damaged or counterfeit).

Drivers will also be concerned that, should they be compelled by TfL to accept the machines but choose not to use them, which they would be within their rights to do, this will expose them to abuse by passengers who do not understand why.

The Chancellor George Osborne wants employees to swap their employment rights for shares in companies they work for, to create a more “flexible workforce”. Workers should no more be compelled to do that than cab drivers to swap their rights to say no to credit cards, for the sake of the profit of a card machine company.

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Long serving Unite member Fred Housego responds to Leon Daniels recent letter to the London Taxi Trade Dear Mr Daniels Re: your letter 192/24679 regarding your post Olympic Games analysis, which appears to be totally at odds with the experiences of the vast majority of London taxi drivers, but I’ll let that pass.

Now we come to your Cabbies Cabinet – a patronising and condescending name if ever there was one. Cabbie is the sort of phrase I associate with the habitués of the St James’ Club members.

However, if by setting up a licensed cab drivers committee are you suggesting it will have real power? I doubt it. But let’s for a moment suggest that I could offer some advice that you’ll take.

It should have the power to negotiate cab fares – for example, if we overcharge we lose custom; if we undercharge we can’t cover our costs. Would it be possible for this committee to demand the restitution of our ‘extra persons’ charge, to regain rate 3 to start at 8pm all week

and that rate 2 is only used on Saturday and Sunday? Will we be able to censure the head of the Carriage Office, involve ourselves with the CO’s budget, demand a counter at Palestra House 10am to 4pm, Monday to Friday for cab drivers to have proper access to the organisation that allegedly runs it? I can almost hear the laughter from your office.

Let me be frank, I think your ’Cabbies Cabinet' is an instrument for allowing the cab trade to blow off steam and nothing more. If you are genuinely serious about a strong, confident, financially sound licensed taxi trade for London then the only way forward is a strong, wellfounded series of checks and balances to which the licensed tax trade can contribute, knowing that what it demands after proper negotiations will be implemented.

I would be interested in your response.

Fred Housego – Badge no. 19888

Press Release Transport for London

TAXI PRIVATE HIRE

TfL encourages Londoners to get home safely with New Safer Travel at Night campaign As the festive party season begins TfL has launched a new ad campaign to warn the public of the dangers in taking illegal minicabs by shattering the myths about getting home safely.

The Mayor has taken a tough line on touting and illegal cabs, and cab related sexual assaults have dropped by 26 percent in the past two years. This new campaign aims to continue that positive trend.

The campaign – which will appear in cinemas, print and online - also promotes the launch of a new Cabwise mobile phone app which provides a quick and easy way to book a licensed minicab and get home safely. The cinema advert reinforces the message that unbooked minicabs are illegal and pose a potential risk to safety.

The campaign forms the latest stage of the Safer Travel at Night (STaN) initiative – a partnership between the Mayor, Transport for London, Metropolitan Police Service and the City of London Police.

The free-to-download Cabwise app (available on iTunes and Google Play) allows users to book the licensed minicab or taxi which is closest to their current location in three easy steps. Alternatively users can visit tfl.gov.uk/cabwise on their Smartphone and simply bookmark the page or, if there is no signal available at the location, the app defaults to the Cabwise text messaging service (60835) offering customers on all platforms the opportunity to use the service and to get home safely.

To reinforce the campaign, face-to-face engagement activity will take place in key London night spots throughout the festive season and posters will be displayed with the focus on encouraging women to book a cab before they leave home.

Steve Burton, TfL’s Director of Community Safety, Enforcement and Policing, said: “Many people who travel in the capital still think that picking up a minicab displaying a TfL licence in the window is legal – but it’s not. Only black cabs can be picked up off the streets; all minicabs need to be pre-booked through a licensed operator and any minicab that picks

someone up off the street is acting illegally.

“Although usage of illegal cabs has fallen since we began the Safer travel at Night initiative, tackling the problem of unbooked minicabs remains a high priority for TfL, the Mayor and the police. I encourage Londoners to download the new Cabwise app.’

Chief Superintendent Sultan Taylor, Safer Transport Command, said: “After a night out it can be tempting to jump into the first minicab you see, but by doing this, you could be putting yourself at risk. All minicabs MUST be booked in advance, even if they are displaying a TfL licence.

“The Safer Transport Command is committed to reducing the number of cabrelated sexual offences and our officers are out on the streets of the capital giving women safer travel information and encouraging them to download the new free Cabwise app.”

TfL’s Safer Travel at Night campaign is supported by Operation Safer Travel at Night, which involves police officers from across the capital working on deterring illegal minicab drivers, as well as engaging with late night revellers to inform them of the dangers of unbooked minicabs.

Although enforcement against unbooked minicabs and engagement with the public takes place throughout the year, there will be an increase in operations to detect and deter offenders during the Christmas party season.

Revellers should follow the following tips on how to stay safe when using minicabs: • Never approach a minicab on the street or accept a fare - they are acting illegally, even if they are licensed by TfL; • Only black cabs can pick passengers up on the street without a booking; • When travelling by minicab always book it with a licensed operator; • When it arrives check it’s for you by getting the driver to confirm your booking details and check the driver’s photo identification; • To get three local cab numbers text ‘CAB’ to 60835** Visit www.tfl.gov.uk/cabwise for more information.

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 7

Unite strategy for the motor industry ●

To campaign for employment rights which equal the best in Europe

●

Improved rights to information and consultation with the workforce

●

To lobby for a strategic investment bank in the UK which will ensure access to funding for all and especially for SMEs

●

Government must re-introduce a system for regional development aid and assistance, the local enterprise partnerships are not working for industry

●

To create a genuine and diverse supplier base within the UK to support manufacturing in the motor industry

●

For government to acknowledge the economic opportunities there are for the UK economy in using the procurement process to buy goods and services from companies based in the UK

Introduction: The automotive sector in the UK has gone through an unprecedented period of technological change, industrial restructuring and, on a positive note, investment from the big global Tier 1 companies located in the sector. The sector is now in a position to drive growth in the UK economy and ensure a positive manufacturing industry flourishes in the UK. Successive governments have agreed that the UK needs to rebalance its economy and as such Unite believes the way to do this is to encourage a diverse and thriving manufacturing sector to remain and flourish in the UK. Successive governments have agreed that the UK needs to re-balance its economy, however so far, this has failed to happen.

Unite is committed to encouraging a diverse and thriving manufacturing sector to ensure the economy never again has to rely on the service sector alone to generate employment and growth.

The strategic companies in the sector, Ford, Nissan, Honda, Vauxhall, Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota have a key role to play in ensuring that the UK becomes a centre of excellence for the design and build of electric and hybrid vehicles. The R&D and innovation available in the UK automotive sector has ensured that companies across the globe have invested in the UK manufacturing sector leading to the creation of thousands of highly skilled jobs in the sector.

●

To campaign for a comprehensive skills and training programme for the sector in an attempt to address the current and future skills shortages and gaps

●

For government to provide the skills framework to enable all companies to recruit apprentices and that sustainable models for learning are used to ensure high quality training resulting in highly skilled workers

●

To campaign to ensure the UK becomes a centre of excellence for the production of electric vehicles, batteries and engines

●

To ensure government acknowledges the role of the Automotive Council in working extensively to promote the UK motor industry, the supply chain and the excellence of the workers within the industry

The automotive industry in the UK is of crucial importance to the wider manufacturing sector and the UK economy in general. The industry had a turnover of over £49 billion in 20101 with £10 billion in value added. The UK produces over one million cars and commercial vehicles and over two million engines annually. The sector contributes over 10 percent of UK total exports and exports to over 100 markets worldwide.

The automotive industry employs over 700,000 people across manufacturing, retail and aftermarket sectors, with a highly skilled workforce that transfers much of its R&D and innovation across other manufacturing and the wider UK economy. In 2010 the UK had the fourth highest R&D spend in Europe. The industry provides high value, highly skilled work and has a strong commitment to the development of young people through the apprenticeship schemes on offer.

However, at a time when manufacturing in the UK is under threat, everything must be done by all stakeholders to ensure the retention, support and promotion of excellence in the automotive sector is achieved. In other countries, such as France or Germany, manufacturing industry enjoys a level of government support and commitment which is unprecedented and which has never been achieved or even pursued by successive UK governments.

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 8

Unite believes that there is so much more that could be achieved with government’s strategic support. The jobs and skills that are crucial to the manufacturing sector and the wider UK economy must be retained in the UK. We cannot afford another recession on the scale of the last economic downturn.

Government has recognised the need for a rebalanced economy and encouraging a sustainable and vibrant motor industry in the UK is one way to achieve this goal.

It is only through all stakeholders – workers, unions, companies and UK Trade and Industry – working together to attract inward investment that will create stronger, more sustainable and balanced regional economies, ensuring that growth – new jobs, new investment, new industries – plays a crucial part in re-balancing the regional economies as it has done in the West Midlands with the investment into the Jaguar Land Rover plants and workforce.

Unite believes the destruction of the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) and their replacement with the Local Enterprise Partnerships has created untold problems for regions who want to attract companies and jobs to their area, government pays lip service to wanting a thriving manufacturing industry in the UK then destroys one of the key mechanisms to achieve this goal.

Future of the Industry The motor industry in the UK has gone through a period of economic and strategic adjustment which has seen it rise from the ashes of the recession in a much stronger global economic position. The industry was under severe strain during the recession and the implementation of the Auto Assistance Programme (AAP) meant strategic policies such as the short term stimulus of £300 million for the scrappage scheme, a £2.3 billion investment programme and the allocation of £400 million of investment to support the shift towards low carbon transport helped to bring the sector through the worst of the recession. Paul Everitt, CEO of the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said at the time “The impact of the scrappage scheme is clear and we are encouraged by the positive impact it has had, increasing new car registrations for the first time since April 2008.”

However, it is only because of the pragmatic decisions made by management and unions at company and worker level in relation to temporary and emergency measures, company restructuring and the retention of sites and skills which has allowed plants to remain open and workers to retain their jobs. This was vital for the industry in the UK. The workforce is highly skilled and these skills could have been lost during the early stages of the recession, the break up of skilled workforces would have created numerous problems for the future success of the industry now the sector is growing again.

The industry has without a doubt transformed itself over the past decade and the future looks more positive for the sector.

It is clear that the large Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) companies are intent on investing money in the plants in the UK and, as a result of this, the UK motor industry is now recognised as a centre of excellence

for the research and design of electric cars and the manufacture of engines and batteries.

The premium car sector and its supply chain are recognized as a key source of many of the innovations which, used more widely, will aid the transition to low carbon vehicles.

The fact the UK has the second largest premium car industry in the world should be seen as a key strategic strength. The key brands such as Jaguar Land Rover, RollsRoyce, Bentley and Aston Martin have significant levels of R&D and innovation which filter down to the wider motor industry. As well as this, brands such as Rolls-Royce UK are key exporters to the emerging markets of China and the Far East whilst growing the luxury car market in the Middle East and the USA.

For the motor components sector, the tragedy of the earthquake in Japan offered a wake up call to many of the key OEM companies in the UK of the absence of a home grown supply chain. This situation throws up many opportunities for component companies already based in the UK and for new emerging companies to provide the components which the large OEM companies need. Unite has consistently campaigned for the sector to have a local supply chain and with many car companies wanting to invest in the UK this could provide for systematic growth for the sector.

Globalisation The UK motor and components sector in the UK has become a major global industry.

Many of the companies in the sector are multi-nationals, owning and operating facilities world wide. This situation has benefits and disadvantages for UK workers.

On the one hand the unprecedented inward investment into these companies means there is substantial growth within the industry, retaining and creating jobs in the sector.

On the other hand, multi-national companies are constantly reviewing costs and wanting to improve productivity. It is because the UK has one of the most flexible workforces in Europe it is much easier to close sites in the UK and transfer work to other sites in Europe or elsewhere globally.

Unite has campaigned tirelessly to address this issue, working closely with government and companies to ensure plants are retained in the UK and investment is attracted to ensure production comes to the UK. It is a recognised fact that some motor companies in Europe enjoy significant support, investment and protection from their governments in relation to the retention of jobs within the home country and investment funds to encourage growth and sustainability for the company.

This does not happen in the UK. Manufacturing has had a very difficult time with recent governments, and the last recession created a situation whereby it was acknowledged by all that the economy in the UK needed to be ‘re-balanced’ and investment in manufacturing was one way to achieve this goal.

It is unfortunate indeed that government has not fulfilled its initial enthusiasm for this goal. Although there has been some investment, government has focussed on cuts to the public sector budget rather than

investigating ways to promote manufacturing exports – including motor vehicles – recognizing that 70 percent of all vehicles made in the UK are exported. Unite has clearly stated that investment for growth is the key to reducing government debt.

Unite recognises the strategic role European Works Councils (EWCs) can play in the motor industry. Unite will ensure that EWCs provide an effective and powerful voice for workers in European Union companies in the industry and that the provisions of the recast EWC directive are used and implemented.

Procurement Unite believes that a positive procurement process can make a significant and strategic impact on the UK manufacturing sector and in particular the motor industry based in the UK. Unite has consistently advocated a level playing field with the rest of Europe in relation to the awarding of contracts for goods and services procured not only in the UK but also in the rest of Europe. Unite commissioned research to identify where local authorities and government offices purchased the vehicles used within the public sector. The research identified that 70 percent of all vehicles procured in the UK were produced elsewhere. This is a shocking statistic, especially as there are seven volume car manufacturers and eight commercial vehicle manufacturers based in the UK. The research also highlighted that there is no coherent procurement policy to buy vehicles manufactured within the UK. This situation is unthinkable when compared with Germany, France and Italy. Unite doubts that the Italian police will ever be buying police cars from Vauxhall yet the police force in Wales bought their vehicles from Audi. Unite recognises the strategic role European Works Councils (EWCs) can play in the motor industry. Unite will ensure that EWCs provide an effective and powerful voice for workers in European Union companies in the industry and that the provisions of the recast EWC directive are used and implemented.

Unite is still working to get a commitment from government to propose guidelines that encourage buying locally. It should also be mentioned that contrary to popular belief and government rhetoric, buying locally does not breach EU procurement regulations and in fact new regulations have been introduced to enable procurers to take into account, social and environmental factors and to allow Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) better access to procurement contracts.

Unite will continue to work to influence government policy objectives regarding procurement through collaboration with companies, workers, industry and politicians.

It is vital that there is a wider recognition of the positive benefits of the procurement process, and more importantly the very real benefits to the wider manufacturing economy and GDP.

Motor component supply chain The UK components sector has a key role to play in the success and viability of the wider motor sector in the UK. On average 74 percent of UK based suppliers manufacture in the UK, although this ratio is lower at Tier 1 level

where 65 percent manufacture in the UK. However, virtually all second tier suppliers operate manufacturing facilities in the UK. There is compelling evidence that proximity and locality are key elements for the supply chain in providing parts for the big manufacturing companies.

Two events in 2011 have shown that having an indigenous supply chain is more important than ever. The earthquake in Japan meant the supply chain for parts was severely disabled in the UK and a number of key OEM companies such as Nissan, Toyota and Honda were only days from standing people down due to a lack of parts. The second of these events were the floods in Thailand. Once again this event affected the supply of parts to the motor manufacturing companies in the UK and Unite hopes that the very real negative impact of these two events will encourage the big OEM companies to increase the sourcing of supply chain parts which are designed and manufactured in the UK. What many people do not realise is that when this situation happens it also has a detrimental impact upon the UK based supply companies. If workers are being stood down and production reduced, then any companies supplying the OEM companies will also be affected and production will be reduced and workers put on shorter hours.

It is clear that the current level of investment in the wider motor industry in the UK has presented a real opportunity for growth for the motor components sector. For example Jaguar Land Rover awarded more than 40 UK companies contracts worth £2 billion to supply components for the Range Rover Evoque. This level of investment has had a crucial effect on creating new skilled jobs and allowing SMEs the opportunities to expand and invest in their own companies.

It is recognised that the average supplier in the UK serves a median of six customers with a strong bias towards OEMs8 that operate vehicle and engine assembly plants in the UK, but there are some companies such as GKN which also supply the aerospace sector and there is a recognised relationship for R&D and innovation between the two sectors. This is a very positive transference and adds to the symbiotic relationship enjoyed by many industrial sectors in the wider manufacturing sector in the UK. However, there are also issues, one of which is where companies rely upon a high proportion of their work from one company and the impact this could have if the work is reduced or moved elsewhere.

The motor components sector also has real problems with a shortage of skilled engineers and serious issues with the lack of apprenticeships on offer within the sector.

With an aging workforce and a skills shortage the sector is in danger of suffering severe shortages in the future which will impact exponentially on future growth and expansion.

The companies within the sector must be encouraged to take on more apprentices, especially SMEs, and most importantly to offer quality apprenticeship places backed by legitimate learning programmes with a focus on craft and expertise.

Commercial vehicles The future and growth of the commercial vehicle market in the UK is proving to be as

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 9

significant as that of the motor vehicle sector.

This is due to a number of companies producing vans, buses, coaches and trucks being awarded significant contracts for the UK market and also tendering for work across the global economy.

There are a number of key large companies within the combined sector with eight commercial vehicle manufacturers and eleven bus and coach manufacturers. These include Leyland Trucks, Alexander Dennis, Ford Transit, GM Vauxhall and Optare – a company in the bus sector who have recently opened the first new bus manufacturing plant in the UK for over forty years.

One of the most significant developments within the UK is for the production of hybrid buses. After trials in London, which have been funded by the Green Bus Funding scheme from the Department of Transport a number of orders have been placed with more than 550 diesel hybrid buses registered. With lobbying from Unite members, the Scottish Executive also responded with a £20 million grant for the funding of buses in Scotland.

As a result of this trial orders have been placed for a further 90 buses. The fund has been an excellent way of stimulating demand for hybrid buses and also in showing significant support for the UK based bus manufacturing industry. The SMMT reported that ‘purpose built bus registrations passed a landmark for the first quarter of 2012 as the market was up by 87.5 percent, with coach volumes up 50 percent’.

There is also potential growth in the shift towards the production of a new bus for London incorporating the open platform feature of the old Routemaster and the contract to supply these buses has been awarded to Wrightbus, the UK’s leading independent supplier of accessible buses.

One of the biggest issues in the sector has been the outsourcing and off shoring of work to low wage economies and this had has been particularly problematic in the van sector.

The GM Vauxhall plant at Luton was also facing industrial uncertainty when GM announced the contract for the production of the new Vivaro van would go to the UK site, this meant the workers jobs were retained and the future of the plant secured up to 2020. One of the major success stories for the UK truck industry is the consistent growth in production and innovation at Leyland Trucks. The plant operates one of the most efficient truck factories in the world, with an innovative robotic chassis paint facility and a state of the art advanced planning and scheduling system.

The widely diverse vehicle range is exported to customers in Europe, Australia, South Africa and North America.

Skills and training Unite believes the motor sector in the UK is one where the employees are highly skilled and highly qualified. However, a shortage of skilled workers will hamper growth within the sector and will limit the potential for any innovative changes to highly technical operational processes involved in the shift to low carbon production.

Unite is keen to ensure that companies within the sector do not become complacent about training their existing workforce

especially at this difficult economic time. It is vital for workers to continue their training and development while in work and it is the employers’ responsibility to ensure the workforce has the opportunity to do this. Skills gaps and shortages can become a serious issue within manufacturing companies and as such could potentially affect the productivity of a company or sector.

as a dynamic career option for young people and especially young women, who are grossly under-represented in the sector. Government investment in education, skills and training is vital for the future of the UK economy and to ensure the motor industry and the wider manufacturing sector within the UK continues to grow and flourish.

Pensions

The present government has said that it wants to see a highly educated and highly skilled workforce for the future growth and prosperity of the UK economy. However, Unite believes that ensuring there are sufficient workplace skills is a matter of shared responsibility between government, employers, trade unions and individuals.

Under these circumstances Unite believes government must take action to ensure employers do train their workers and the only way of ensuring this happens is through the introduction of a statutory training levy.

A prime example of a system which clearly works is the German VET system.

Vocational Education and Training (VET) is deeply embedded and widely respected in German society. The system offers qualifications in a broad spectrum of professions and can flexibly adapt to the changing needs of the labour market. The dual system is especially well developed in Germany, integrating work based and school based learning to prepare apprentices for the transition to full time employment. Around 60 percent of all young people in Germany learn a profession within the dual system of vocational education and training.

The VET system as a whole is well resourced, combining public and private funding. Germany has maintained strong financial support for the system and maintained the apprenticeship offer for the VET system even through the economic crisis.

A major strength of the dual system is the high degree of engagement and ownership on the part of employers and other social partners.

The system also has an intricate system of checks and balances at the national, state, municipal and company level which ensures that the short term needs of employers do not distort broader education and economic goals.

Unite believes apprenticeships are the key to ensuring the skills gaps and shortages currently prevalent in the manufacturing sector are addressed. It is vital that for a thriving and successful motor industry companies must invest in apprenticeships. Government must provide the right conditions for employers to take on apprentices and must also provide the correct level of funding and support, especially in relation to SMEs who are woefully under-represented where the recruitment and training of apprentices is concerned.

It is clear that trade unions have played a pivotal role in encouraging workers and employers to participate fully in the learning agenda, this role could be extended to include in-house training and skills development for all workers.

Unite has consistently commented on the low profile that manufacturing continues to have as a career option in schools. It is imperative that government, schools, careers advisors and colleges ‘market’ manufacturing

One of the most crucial issues to affect workers in the motor industry is the systematic attack on their pensions. Unite members are determined to protect their pensions and campaign vigorously to retain not only their own pensions but also pensions for future generations.

The closure of final salary pension schemes is becoming endemic across many industrial sectors and Unite members believe this must be halted.

Closing a scheme to new entrants throws up issues of future funding for pension schemes and often means there is a two tier workforce in a company. Unite is clear that when pension schemes are closed to new entrants this is often followed within five years by the closure of the scheme completely.

There have been consistent issues with employers taking pensions holidays when times are good, but when times are bad - as they are now - it proves difficult for companies to make up any shortfall. As usual the losers in this situation are the workers who are paying into the pension schemes often losing thousands of pounds in pension payments.

The secondary attack by government in making the change whereby pensions are calculated using CPI instead of RPI has again ensured that those entering retirement are losing out – Unite is clear, this type of attack must stop and members in the motor industry will do everything they can to protect and retain existing pension provision in their workplace – they have paid for it, they deserve to benefit from it.

Agency and temporary workers The Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) took effect from 1st October 2011 in the UK and offer some limited protection to workers used by employers in place of employing permanent workers. However, agency workers will still have to work 12 weeks in the same role with an employer before obtaining rights to equal pay, holiday entitlement, and equal treatment on working time issues, the right to attend ante-natal appointments or to be offered alternative work or suspension on full pay if

there is no alternative work available.

Agency workers are entitled to equal treatment in relation to collective facilities such as canteens, common rooms, transport services and crèches from day one. However, agency workers still have no statutory right to company sick pay, pension payments, redundancy pay, contractual maternity or paternity pay or service related bonuses. All of these are only secured by an agreement between the employer and the trade union.

The biggest problem with the AWR is the way companies have exploited a loop hole called the Swedish Derogation. The derogation was introduced to ensure that agency workers in Europe were protected between work assignments and ensuring they were paid for this period. Because of the different employment regulations in the UK this has resulted in some workers being ‘employed’ on a permanent contract by the agency rather than by the company the agency supplied them to.

As such an agency worker will not qualify for equal pay with the people they are working alongside at the workplace as they are being employed by the agency and effectively being paid between assignments – but the amount of pay between assignments could be as low as 50% of the salary they were originally receiving and also means that the worker has little or no job security and in some cases pay has been reduced to minimum wage.

Unite has a three fold action plan for dealing with unscrupulous employers who try to use the Swedish Derogation to exploit agency workers.

The first is to ensure there is an agency workers agreement at all Unite recognised workplaces, leading to permanent employ-ment. This will ensure that agency workers are employed under the same pay and terms and conditions as full time permanent workers, ensuring there is not a race to the bottom regarding pay and terms and conditions.

The second is the total rejection of the use of the Swedish Derogation in Unite recognised workplaces.

The third is to ensure the organising of agency workers is a priority especially at workplaces where there are a large number of agency workers employed. Unite has produced a number of guides and pamphlets explaining the implications of the Swedish Derogation and why agency workers should join the union. These can be accessed via the Unite the Union website.

Tony Burke Assistant General Secretary, Manufacturing Roger Maddison National officer Tony Murphy National officer Janet Golds Research officer, Manufacturing

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 10

HISTORY OF THE COVENTRY BUILT BLACK CAB In 1929 Mann and Overton, the biggest taxi dealership, sponsored Austin to create a new and much more cost-effective cab which immediately dominated the market. Since that agreement, more than 70 years ago, there is a direct line of succession to today’s TX4 taxi.

1997 TX1

1947 FX3 In 1947, a consortium of Mann and Overton, Carbodies of Coventry and Austin created this new design that came to dominate the market. Originally petrol powered, the first diesel version became available in 1952.

The all-new TX1 was possibly the biggest single step forward in the history of London Taxis. The design combined the unmistakable silhouette of the traditional taxi with huge advances in usability and refinement. To take just two examples the windscreen is 48% bigger and the rear doors open 44% wider, to a full 90° angle.

Those changes mean it is easier for passengers to get in and easier for them to see out, better to view the famous landmarks as they pass. It was also safer, with full three-point seat belts for all five passengers and an integral child seat.

2002 TXII A major evolution of the TX series, the TXII introduced a number of major improvements. The engine changed to a Ford 2.5 litre unit giving better performance and the suspension was given a major redesign.

At the rear, coil springs were used for the first time on a London taxi. Combined with a new front anti-roll bar this gave passengers a much smoother ride with less roll through corners.

1958 FX4 The FX4 became the best-known taxi in history over its long life. It began as another joint venture between the three companies (early ones wore Austin badges), but in 1982, Carbodies bought the rights to the design and, as London Taxis International, continued to develop the vehicle.

The model underwent continuous development: originally a 2.2 diesel, it was offered with a petrol option in 1961. The engines were uprated from Austin units to Land Rover diesels in 1982.

1989 Fairway In 1989 the FX4 was heavily revised to create the Fairway.The major changes were a new 2.7 litre Nissan engine, new front suspension incorporating disc brakes and a fully wheelchair accessible interior.

2006 TX4 The TX4 brings yet further improvements to the London taxi. The new VM Motori diesel engine meets the Euro IV emission standard which means a much improved environmental performance. ABS brakes provide increased safety, while the passengers benefit from reduced noise levels.

There are a number of other refinements, such as improved ventilation (with the option of air conditioning), improved intercom system and an interior redesign to give a lighter, brighter ambience.

Information taken from the London Taxi Company website

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 11

cab:app UK road trip

by Peter Schive, London driver (badge no. 63768) and founder of cab:app That’s £5,565 please guv’nor!

When the cab:app team decided to travel around the UK in a TX4 promoting their mobile taxi hailing and card payment app for hackney drivers, we knew it would be a trip of discovery. Fortunately we didn’t actually have to pay the metered fare!

While we are convinced that technology is the solution to many of the problems facing the hackney carriage industry we knew we needed to prove our theory. Here’s how we did it and what we found on our 10 day journey, driving 1,373 miles, across 35 cities, meeting over 1,000 drivers, sleeping in 7 Premier Inns (didn’t see Lenny Henry once!) and presenting at the National Taxi Association conference.

This was all in a TX4 Euro 5, which miraculously was not recalled by the London Taxi Company despite having a similar registration to those that were.

Different cities, different vehicles, same challenges Driving north from London, every town and city we visited the same strong theme emerged; hackney drivers want to work but face an uphill battle. Some of the issues they face include significant price undercutting and illegal touting for business by private hire, the rising cost of radio circuits, exorbitant airport and train station fees, inflated insurance, the cost of handling and processing credit cards and in some towns a local authority block on accepting cards. Combine these barriers to business with the threat of deregulation and the challenges become even bigger.

The word on the street In Bolton we were shocked to learn that there are only 130 hackney drivers vs. 2,500 private hire, charging “half what we charge on the meter”. In Sunderland one driver we spoke to stated “you can’t get on the ranks for private hire picking up illegally, but the council turn a blind eye”. In Northampton we openly saw a minicab touting for work at the station rank and a driver told us “there is no enforcement of private hire by the local council.”

One of the most sobering comments came from a group of drivers at Preston train station who stated that “2-3 years from now hackneys will be gone from Preston if we don’t do something about it.”

Just charge it…or perhaps not Credit card discussion was a contentious subject and we found many drivers are locked into long term chip and pin contracts paying up to £20 per month to suppliers for equipment, who also charge passengers 10%. Drivers across the country expressed their opinions that this is too high. A driver in Hemel Hempstead did a £180 job, which cost the passenger £18 in card fees. Payments to drivers are also taking too long with 7-14 days to be paid.

Another outrageous finding was that some local authorities don’t permit drivers to accept credit cards. This may be due to high costs but surely this is a restriction of trade? This was the case in Coventry, and in Leicester and Derby we were told that drivers can only accept cards if they work for a radio circuit.

In Edinburgh the council need to approve chip and pin before a driver can take cards and in Newcastle the council has not sanctioned chip and pin as it’s considered too expensive for passengers.

To add to these challenges drivers face high permit fees for the privilege of picking up from airports and train stations. Some examples include Birmingham Airport where the charge is £1,250 per year plus £2.50 for every pick up and at Heathrow Airport it costs £6 per job. In York, the train station charges £1,200 per year for a taxi permit.

Then there’s radio circuit fees being charged to drivers, these range from £80 to £100/week in Glasgow to £120 in Brighton.

The general consensus was that they were continually putting up weekly/monthly subscription costs even when there is less work. One driver asked the question “Has anyone ever heard of a radio bringing fees down?” There seems to be little or no alignment of interest between the radio operator, profitability and driver earnings.

That said, many drivers we met are being entrepreneurial and are working together in their own small way setting up independent circuits and printing consumer cards to help generate new business.

Lets talk about The Law Commission and deregulation Whilst on the road we stopped off at the National Taxi Association annual conference in Manchester to introduce cab:app to fellow drivers and also hear an update from the Law Commission on deregulation. We also heard from John Usher, President of the Irish Taxi Federation, speaking on the history of the Irish taxi industry and the impact of deregulation there. The bottom line expressed by John was that it had been an unmitigated disaster and he sincerely hoped we never have to face the same consequences in England.

With 78,000 licensed taxis in England & Wales the Law Commission would propose abolition of quantity restrictions and favour a two-tier system for taxis and PHV. One of the

key reasons cited by the Law Commission in favour of deregulation is to provide access to the public at peak times particularly in larger cities to help clear them at night.

The workforce is there; it’s just not being utilised effectively. Hackney drivers have done the knowledge, they have been CRB checked and drive vehicles which are licensed and insured. Add to this the fact that many hackney cabs are wheelchair accessible.

Accessibility exposed Hackney cabs should be about accessibility for all. Many passengers with reduced mobility rely on this as their primary method of transport. There is no shortage of hackney drivers with standard accessibility, in cities like London and towns like Clydebank this is 100% of the hackney cabs on the road.

The real issue is historically there has been no way for drivers and passengers to connect unless drivers join an expensive radio circuit or passengers make their way to the ranks which is not ideal if it’s cold, wet or dark.

Across the country, taxpayer’s money is being wasted by Trusts and local authorities on other forms of transport for disabled passengers when a hackney cab is already equipped for this, and transporting passengers can be done at a relatively low cost.

There is some good news – technology can unite hackney drivers The proof we needed was in the stories of all the drivers we met and was reinforced by one of our local partners in Blackpool.

Blackpool Licensed Taxi Operators Association approached cab:app as a solution to win back work from private hire and help their drivers unite through the latest mobile technology. They had the drive and the desire to take a stand, armed with 25,000 flyers they

distributed to houses, local businesses and hotels. They now are wrapping 20 cabs to help promote the services around town to locals and tourists. cab:app technology has invigorated hackney drivers in Blackpool and given them renewed hope.

We know drivers want to work and we know that they are being squeezed on several fronts, and while technology can’t solve all the problems within the industry it will help to address many of them. Hackney drivers are always looking for ways to increase their income without increasing costs. cab:app can provide a framework for getting more work and connecting drivers and passengers with a pay as you go approach and a free in app credit card facility for drivers.

At the end of the day a passenger just wants to get a cab safely and efficiently. cab:app provides this by offering instant hail, pre bookings, fixed price fares, the ability to pay by card and the reassurance of a hackney cab with full details of their driver. Passengers can even track their driver and communicate directly via the app.

Drivers get it! In Middlesbrough one driver declared “this is the future” and in Clydebank the hackney spokesman said “we’ve been looking for the catch and can’t find one. This gives us hope and doesn’t cost us so we’ve nothing to lose”.

In Carlisle and Chester women drivers immediately recognised the safety benefits of the app for drivers and passengers alike stating “this is really good for women, we like to see who the passenger is and the passenger probably likes to see who is picking them up” and “the in-app messaging is great”.

For the cab:app team this was a journey of discovery. By the end of the trip we felt humbled by what we found, yet excited about the hope new technology is giving fellow drivers across the UK and Ireland.

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 12

London Suburban Review LTPH held a ‘Suburban Review Workshop’ at Palestra, which is intended to be the first of many and may lead to a full ‘Suburban Consultation’ towards the end of 2013.

A brief history of the Suburban sectors, Island ranks and ‘extensions’ was given followed by an open forum where about 100 Suburban (Yellow Badge) drivers and a few All London (Green Badge) drivers were encouraged to give their views on the way forward.

I opened the debate, much to the annoyance of most in the room, by stating that, as far as Unite’s London Taxi Branch is concerned, there is currently no need for any more ‘Island ranks’ or ‘Extensions’ for any driver with a Suburban Licence – it was a deliberate ploy as it’s not hard to predict the sort of changes that were about to be suggested, why else have a ‘review’.

I added that although we at Unite had opposed the ‘Identifiers’ we have been proved to be wrong regarding the extent of the problem previous to their introduction – just look at the amount of Yellow Badges serving the Island ranks and extensions (Hackney and Clapham) since the introduction of the Identifiers, particularly at night – where were these cabs before?? Hopefully this, long term, will see punters returning to the Taxi trade in those areas, especially with the success of Hailo, other ‘Apps’ are available.

Some of those present condemned the Identifiers and requested their removal due to intimidation by Green on Yellow - anecdotally this seems to be a problem although I’m not sure that it’s as widespread as suggested. As promised at this forum I repeat that the advice from all at Unite, printed many times over the past year or so, is . . . that anyone who sees a suburban driver they ‘think’ is plying for hire outside their sector, do not approach them, just take the details and report it to LTPH. I’ve listed below most of the suggestions made by Suburban drivers during the course of the forum – I’ll leave it to the 22,000 or so Green badge drivers to make up their own mind on what they view as viable or, indeed, fair, bearing in mind how long it took and how hard it was to get that All London ‘Green’ Badge. . . . ● After working as a Suburban driver for two years they should be able to start the ‘all London (Green) Knowledge’ on 21 days!! ● A new ‘going-home night rank’ at Charing Cross for suburban drivers, who’ve had a job into town, so they can take a job back to their own sector!! ● A ‘Doughnut’ licence to include all the current 9 Sectors in one Sector for all Suburban drivers. ● Some Sector 9 drivers (Brent, Harrow, Barnet) who can currently ply for hire in Kilburn High Road as far south as Oxford Road, just north of the Marriott Hotel, stated they should be entitled to rank at the hotel and use the rank in Elgin Avenue, as well as Maida Vale itself!! ● Some Sector 2 drivers (Newham, Redbridge, etc . . . ) expect the same for the whole of Tower Hamlets, which, of course, includes Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs!! ● Some in Sector 1 (Haringey, Waltham Forest, Enfield), who’ve also got the Hackney ‘extension’, want another ‘extension’ to include Shoreditch High Street, Great Eastern Street and Old Street up to the Old Street Station!!

By PETER BOND

questions.

Are there too many drivers in my chosen sector? ● Would I be better off choosing a sector with fewer drivers?

You are strongly advised to find out as much as you can about your chosen sector before applying.

From 31 January 2012 applications will not be processed for the following sectors: ● Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Newham and Redbridge ● Merton and Sutton ● Hounslow, Kingston upon Thames and Richmond upon Thames ●

Island Ranks

●

Some in Sector 6 (Merton and Sutton) and Sector 7 (Kingston, Richmond and Hounslow) who’ve got the Clapham/ Tooting ‘extension’ want, and expect, another ‘extension’ to include Clapham High Street!!

Just think about all of the above, is there really a shortage of Taxis in any of the area’s mentioned . . . absolutely not. How on earth would a Suburban rank at Charing Cross be enforced, 9 different coloured ‘Identifiers’? to be enforced by who? LTPH can’t even enforce their own ‘Satellite’ offices!!

Other suggestions from Suburban drivers made over the last few years at Unite Branch meetings, all were thrown out, include . . .

Hounslow Drivers to rank at Heathrow, Ealing drivers to rank at Shepherds Bush Green, Hammersmith and Westfield, and even Sectors 3- 6 (South and South-East) drivers to cover Waterloo and London Bridge Stations on the rare occasions no cabs are actually ranking all the way to Westminster Bridge Road or to Borough High Street!!

It has to be clearly stated that these suggestions come from a relatively small number of Suburban drivers and not even these drivers are in agreement on all the above …… why would those in Sector 3 (SouthEast) want the rest to encroach on the lucrative work coming out of the O2 Arena, if the ‘Doughnut’ idea were to be implemented.

Surely the 3,000 or so Suburban drivers’ views on how to re-organise the licensing requirements for London Taxi Drivers are not going to overshadow the view of the 22,000 or so All London (Green) drivers who have actually completed the Knowledge of all the area’s/sectors they work.

We, at Unite, totally support the first pledge made in the letter we’ve all received from Leon Daniels (Managing Director Surface Transport) on behalf of the Mayor, ‘Working on an action plan to help Suburban drivers’, but NOT to the detriment of green badge drivers.

The bottom line is the public trust the Licensed Taxi Trade over the rest for two main reasons; 1 Safety, for themselves, their family and loved ones.

2 Knowledge, mostly, within reason, we know (‘Knowledge’) where we’re going.

Under no circumstances should these fundamental principles be compromised.

There is one thing I have never understood about some, and I mean only some not most, Suburban drivers . . . why would you choose, and it is their choice, to do the Knowledge of one, two or more Sectors, as opposed to the All London Knowledge, and then argue for a short-cut, dare I mention ‘QuickieKnowledge’, to a ‘Green Badge’.

Peter Bond is a member of Unite’s Cab Trade Advisory Committee

Suburban licence The suburban area of London is divided into nine sectors. The sectors are based on borough boundaries and drivers with a Suburban licence can work only within the sector(s) for which they are licensed. Drivers may add additional sectors once licensed.

If you are thinking of becoming a Suburban taxi driver, you will need to make an informed decision on your choice of sector.

You should ask yourself the following

Information from TfL

There are six island ranks. These are located in inner London boroughs but all drivers licensed for the specified suburban boroughs are allowed to ply for hire on these ranks. ● Finsbury Park Bus Station - Haringey drivers ● Garratt Lane (Arndale), Wandsworth Merton and Sutton drivers ● Garratt Lane (Sainsbury's), Wandsworth Merton and Sutton drivers ● Mitcham Road (Tooting Broadway Station) – Merton and Sutton drivers without the Clapham extension ● Wimbledon Park Road (Southfields Station) - Merton and Sutton drivers ● High Street, Putney - Richmond upon Thames drivers All other ranks in the 10 inner London boroughs and the City of London are available to All London drivers only.

Sector Extensions There are two taxi driver licence extension areas, one covering Clapham, Balham and Tooting, the other Hackney. To ply for hire in these areas drivers must have them specified on their licence.

Drivers licensed for Merton and Sutton are eligible to apply for the Clapham extension and drivers licensed for Haringey and/or Waltham Forest can apply for the Hackney extension. Drivers have to pass a short Knowledge assessment before being licensed for the extension but once licensed can ply for hire anywhere within these areas including on the ranks.

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 13

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Tel: 020 8558 8881 ✩ Ample Parking ✩ All Work Guaranteed ✩ ✩ Only Genuine Parts Used ✩

ACCOUNTANTS

SIMIA WALL THE TAXI DRIVERS ACCOUNTANTS

NOW ONLY AT:

178 BISHOPSGATE LONDON EC2M 4NJ FOR APPOINTMENTS PHONE

020 7283 1604 THE ACCOUNTANTS YOU CAN TALK TO VISIT US AT www.simiawall.com

MONTAGU ASSOCIATES Cab Trade Personal Tax Specialist Accounts prepared/Tax returns completed Annual cost £200 plus VAT Wallington, Surrey Phone:

020 8647 8270

Ensure that your tax liabilities are correct

ADVICE IS FREE

Contact Paul or Andy

020 8558 8881 LONDON CABS TO RENT Full back-up ● TXI’s/Fairways Full/half flat rates ● New drivers welcome ●

●

07989 411302 01799 599655

TEL:

THE SANDING COMPANY LTD. All types of wooden floor renovation undertaken.

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‘A’ GRADE GARAGE Kelvin Works 58-60 Highbury Grove, London N5

7226 7205 ☎ 020 020 7359 4270 0171 226 7205 0171359 4270

LONDON D J VAUGHAN & SON TAXI SPECIALIST

Quality Drivers required for well-maintained Fleet

•

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•

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WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 14

Guess what app I had in my cab last night Taxis in cities around the world are getting increasingly digital. But what does that mean for traditional cabbies? Jamie Merrill finds out.

It’s cold, wet and you’ve been shopping in town all day. There’s not a bus due for 25 minutes and spray from passing cars is soaking you to the bone.

Your inner bank manager relents, you decide to treat yourself and raise your hand to try to hail a cab home. One ploughs by without spotting you, the next two already have passengers, then there’s nothing.

A few years ago you would have cursed under your breath and accepted a soggy wait.

Not today. A few taps of your smartphone and a black cab comes around the corner, pulls up on the kerb in front of you, calls you by name and whisks you away.

London's cabbies are famous the world over for their bulbous black cars, gift of the gab and ‘‘the knowledge’’, but what isn’t so well known is that in the past year, they’ve become an army of tech-savvy early adopters.

And in an unlikely alliance have joined mobile-app developers to transform the way we hail a cab.

The exact business model varies from app to app, but essentially both driver (whether of a private-hire vehicle or licensed cab) and passenger download a free app to their smartphone. It uses the phone’s inbuilt GPS and mapping to put the two together quickly and pre-registered credit-card details make payment easier.

No specialist equipment or subscription is required. The driver benefits from less time searching for a fare, while the passenger gets a cab at their door without having to pick up the phone or go out on to the street.

In Britain the biggest player is Hailo, with 9,000 drivers registered in the capital. It launched last year and has quickly been dubbed Facebook for cabbies but is being chased by rivals including cab:app, GetTaxi, London Taxi App and TaxiSquare.

Hailo, which operates in nine cities worldwide and is known for its bright-yellow sponsorship of previously black cabs, was set up by three cabbies and internet entrepreneurs Ron Zeghibe, Caspar Woolley and Jay Bregman after a chance meeting in a café off London’s Tottenham Court Road. Working exclusively with licensed black cabs, it raised £20m from investors including the team behind Skype and now employs 100 people worldwide and makes more than £600,000 a week in new-found fares in London alone.

“The secret of our success,” says Bregman, the firm’s chief executive, “is that we focused first on establishing an engaged and happy community of drivers.” Research by the company found that drivers can spend as much as 50 per cent of their time looking for a fare.

“So instead of just matching drivers with our customers we’ve also provided services such as a daily log so they can improve their efficiency, and an information service so they can share information about traffic and which taxi ranks need more cab.”

From each successful “hail” – the company puts this in the region of five figures per day in the capital – the firm takes a 10 per cent cut.

“We’ve found that drivers, who are actually the CEOs of their own individual businesses, are more than happy to pay a matchmaker fee to find business they otherwise wouldn’t have had,” Bregman says.

West London cabbie Seamus Balfe is a typical

Motorists dubious about driverless cars user. He started out using a rival app before switching to Hailo this year: “I got a job within two or three minutes of signing up and now I can get four or five extra jobs a day.”

Steve McNamara, the general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, agrees new technology is crucial for cabbies who have been struggling to compete against private-hire operators. “For the first time in years, we have a way to fight back against the minicab firms like Addison Lee who have a massively unfair advantage over us with cheaper vehicles, less regulation and cheaper labour. Go and ask any cabbie using Hailo and they'll tell you, one reason they do it is because they enjoy seeing Addison Lee taking a kicking.”

For the most part, taxi apps are proving popular in very large cities, where there are the biggest networks of licensed drivers, but that may be about to change. Salford-based engineer Vladica Mitrovic has spent two years setting up Cab My Taxi in Manchester and only a week after launching has 60 cabbies registered to work with his new app. Unlike Hailo, which works only with licensed cabs, Cab My Taxi gives the option of hailing a licensed cab or being offered three quotes for a minicab.

You can then use the app to book the best deal. “The feedback we‘ve had already is amazing, and ours is the only app we are aware of that offers hackney carriages and privatehire services in one place,” Mitrovic says.

A slightly different model is Uber, which started out in America, and is available in more than 20 cities worldwide and arrived in London this summer.

It’s a darling of Silicon Valley investors and has attracted £32m of funding from Goldman Sachs, Menlo Ventures and Jeff Bezos. Unlike Hailo and other black-cab-style apps, it matches customers with private-hire, limousine-like cars and 4x4s rather than existing networks of licensed cabs.

It is not all easy motoring for taxi apps, though. Even Balfe, a keen smartphone user, is still circumspect. He picks up fewer Hailo passengers now than he did several months ago and often has to travel farther to collect them. “I still prefer to pick someone off the street because it is instant and I don't have to travel to get to them.”

More worrying for taxi-app start-ups are the regulatory challenges they face in some cities that mandate certain regulations around card payment. Uber recently had to withdraw its Uber Taxi service in New York after such a dispute and in a separate development was slammed after Superstorm Sandy for hiking its prices by 200 per cent.

London, Bregman says, is “the biggest and most advanced taxi market in the world,” but will it allow for a profitable business?

Hailo claims it is focused on “expansion” but will come into profit for its London operations by the end of the year.

Firms such as Uber and Hailo will have to battle against fierce competition and established (and profitable) players such as Addison Lee and Radio Taxis to make it. If they can pull it off in London, though, the way we call cabs across the world may change for ever and the crisp raising of the arm and call of “taxi’ could be replaced by the gentle tap of a smartphone screen.

independent.co.uk

News Release Forty per cent of motorists would never consider using a driverless car, according to the IAM’s latest poll. Furthermore, 65 per cent of people are sceptical as to whether or not driverless technology is actually a good idea.

Driverless cars rely on radars, GPS and satellites to drive and navigate without the need for a driver to take control. Google’s driverless vehicle has so far driven a total of 300,000 miles without an accident. However, only one third of respondents agreed that this provides a strong argument that the removal of the human element from driving would benefit road safety.

The majority of motorists (815 of 1,088 respondents) believe that focus should be redirected from making cars better to making drivers themselves safer. Although, around half of respondents (500 of 1,088) feel that driverless cars are a good initiative for the future.

One aspect of advanced car technology is that vehicles would be unable to exceed the speed limit. Half of respondents think this is an attractive quality in the driverless car, while the remaining 50 per cent consider it strictly a disadvantage.

Other results show:

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Half of motorists don’t think that driverless cars will become popular. ● 56 per cent do not think there is a possibility that driverless cars will be the norm within the next ten years. ● 98 of 1,088 people think that driverless car technology is irresponsible. ● 22 per cent of respondents would use a driverless car. ● Over half of motorists think that automated systems should take control to prevent a crash. ● 92 per cent of people like the fact that with driverless car technology, the car behind would not be allowed to drive too close to you.

IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “The presence of driverless technology in every car is still many years away. In the meantime, more should be done immediately to improve driver standards and deal with the most common human errors through better training, as well as incentives by the government and insurance companies.

Of course technology has a huge role to play in road safety, but as long as there are cars on the road people will want to drive them. What we need to aim for is first class drivers operating first class vehicles.”

New taxi drivers in Bristol now need Gold Standard All new taxi drivers in Bristol will have to complete the Gold Standard taxi driver training programme before they are issued with a licence from now on.

The Gold Standard is a kitemark for Hackney carriage and private hire drivers and is one of the first in the UK. The Gold Standard training is designed to help drivers improve their skills in the service they offer in particular in how they meet the needs of all passengers, including those with disabilities.

It was devised by Bristol City Council with partners including input from disabled people from the Bristol Physical Access Chain, which acts as an advisory group for access issues for the council.

Since introducing this scheme on a voluntary basis nearly 200 drivers have gained the gold standard and from now on all new drivers will be required to take the training.

The standard is based on a vocational

qualification in Road Passenger Vehicle driving (BTec) and the World Host qualification in customer care. Additionally a specially designed training module around disability equality has been incorporated into the programme.

Nick Carter from Safer Bristol said: “The taxi and private hire trade are vitally important to the economic and social wellbeing of the City of Bristol. ‘‘For visitors to the city a taxi driver will often be the first point of contact they have, while many permanent residents of the city, particularly disabled people, depend on the provision of high-quality taxi and private hire services to sustain and enhance their quality of life. ‘‘We believe by requiring new applicants for licences to take this training and encouraging others to gain the kitemark the overall quality of service will be improved.’’ westburyontrympeople.co.uk

WINTER 2012 Special Edition – CAB TRADE NEWS – Page 15

Professional taxi drivers who are members of Unite can benefit from a unique service to support them at work – DriverCare

National monthly paper of the licensed taxi trade

EDITORIAL: 020

3589 0322

EDITORIAL BOARD: Mike Hedges, Frank Hull, Peter J. Rose CONTENT MANAGER: Peter J. Rose 07903 525520 Email: peterjrose@cabtradenews.co.uk Published by: Cab Trade News, Woodberry, 218 Green Lanes, London N4 2HB Design & Layout: Stan Busbridge Printed by: Trinity Mirror.

1

Why DriverCare?

PLEASE COMPLETE IN CAPITAL LETTERS Tick boxes where applicable. Write in white area only.

YES! I want to join UNITE

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF

Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms

Initials

Last Name

Male

House name or number

For all professional drivers an accident, illness or injury could mean the permanent loss of their licence. And no licence means no job.

While all Unite members are entitled to a wide range of services at work and support in personal matters too, Unite’s DriverCare scheme – first introduced in 1997 – offers compensation for the permanent loss of a licence and extra benefits, including accident and assault cover, all for a small sum on top of the standard Unite Cab Section membership contribution.

If you’re not a Unite member but think you might benefit from the DriverCare scheme, join Unite now. For existing members wishing to benefit from DriverCare, contact your regional office.

앻

✓

Female

Rest of home address

Postcode Date of Birth

Contact phone no

Email

Day Month Year

As part of the Union’s equal opportunity policy, we ask this question to help us improve the service to our members. Are you: White/British

White/Irish

Bangladeshi

Indian

Black/British

Pakistani

Black/other

Black African

Black/Caribbean Yes

White/other please specify

2

Black/Irish

Chinese

No

Do you have a disability? please specify

WHICH MEMBERSHIP DO YOU REQUIRE Core and Ancillary

Core and Ancillary with Driver Care

Unite Core

Core with Driver Care

DriverCare benefits For only 80p a week extra on top of the standard Unite membership contribution drivers and their families can benefit from the following:

3

YOUR LICENSING AREA

BRANCH NO (if known)

•

£7,000 cover following loss of licence due to injury, disability, illness, poor eyesight or assault.

• £5,000 for death or permanent disability following an accident at work.

• £1,000 following an assault while working.

• Financial support for legal costs incurred while working as a licensed taxi driver.

• Help with legal costs and consequential hardship following being charged with certain traffic offences.

Members over the age of 60 enjoy increased personal accident cover of £30,000 and assault cover of £3,000 in place of loss of licence benefit: full details of benefits are available from DriverCare categories, visit unitetheunion.org

4

YOUR PREVIOUS UNION MEMBERSHIP Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of this or any other union?

Yes

No

If Yes, which union or Unite branch?

Yes

5

If Yes, by how much? £

PAYMENT DETAILS Direct Debit My payments including Section Fund will be

£

I WISH TO PAY BY DIRECT DEBIT To the Manager Name of Bank/Building Society

Annually*

Monthly

Instruct your Bank/Building Society to pay by Direct Debit

Name of Account Holder

Sort Code

Bank/Building Society Address

Account Number

Direct Debits will be deducted from your account in the middle of the month

Extra cover Members can exclusively take out top-up cover for loss of licence with additional cover of up to £15,000: contact your regional office for more details of top-up cover.

Data Protection Statement The Unite the Union holds personal data about all members. This data is used to process your membership, and to provide you with the benefits and services to which you are entitled under the Rules of the Union. It is also used to provide you with information about the Union, and about other benefits and services which may be of interest to you. It may also be used for statistical or other purposes related to the administration of the Union, and to process any requests you might make for the payment of your subscriptions by direct debit. All membership information is processed in accordance with data protection legislation. For further information, please contact the Unite Head Office.

Conditions A number of conditions apply when seeking DriverCare cover following loss of licence, details of which can be found @unitetheunion.org More details can also be found from local representatives or Unite regional offices.

6

YOUR SIGNATURE

Direct Debit Guarantee • • • •

This Guarantee is offered by all Banks and Building Societies that take part in the Direct Debit Scheme. The efficiency and security of the Scheme is monitored and protected by our own Bank or Building Society.

If the amount to be paid or the payment date change, the Unite Union will notify you 10 working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed.

If an error is made by the Unite Union or your Bank or Building Society, you are guaranteed a full and immediate refund from your branch of the amount paid.

You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by writing to your Bank or Building Society. Please also send a copy of your letter to us.

Signature

Your declaration I agree, in the event of being admitted as a member of the Unite the Union , that I am prepared to confirm to its rules and regulations, and such alterations as may be made from time to time in accordance with the constitution of the Union. I agree to the processing of data for the purposes of furthering the objectives of the Union.

Republic of Ireland

Day

Month

Year

FOR OFFICE USE ONLY Amount paid

Reference Number

Location Code Bargaining Group

앻

Drivers in the Republic of Ireland should contact their local representative or regional offices for details of the DriverCare financial cover and membership fee in euros.

DriverCare terms and conditions can be found at www.unitetheunion.org

No

Are you in arrears

Trade Group

Date of Entry

Source Code

Employer code

Recruited by

Payroll Code

Branch Number

Workplace Code

Branch Fund Code

PLEASE SEND YOUR COMPLETED APPLICATION FORMS TO: UNITE THE UNION CAB SECTION, WOODBERRY, 218 GREEN LANES, LONDON N4 2HB