Cabbies axed for talking politics

Herald Sun ^ | 25 June 2005 | Ashley Gardiner

[Aussie Dasher]

PESTERING passengers about politics or religion could cost taxi drivers their jobs under a proposed Victorian code of conduct.

Foreign flags and religious symbols would also have to be kept out of passengers' sight. But the Australian flag and coat of arms would be exempt from any ban, according to a draft of the code seen by the Herald Sun.

The taxi industry says tensions arising from the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 are behind the proposals.

Official complaints against taxi drivers jumped by 45 per cent from 2002 to 2004.

The State Government last night said it had not seen the report, prepared for its own taxi reform working party.

The draft says drivers who break the rules could face retraining, a warning, or suspension or cancellation of their licences.

Victorian Taxi Association chief executive Neil Sach said passengers wanted a ride, not a lecture.

"When people hire a taxi, they don't want views or attitudes imposed on them," Mr Sach said yesterday.

"There have been isolated cases where, particularly after September 11, there were some taxis running around with anti-American slogans on them.

"They weren't put there by the owner of the cab, they were put there by the driver."

Mr Sach said the proposed code should be viewed as guidelines rather than as rules.

"The line is drawn when the customer believes something has been imposed upon them," Mr Sach said."Most drivers have got a point of view. They like to talk to people - that's why they do the job."

But Mr Sach drew a parallel to religious groups which canvass door to door.

"They've got a right to knock but if you don't want to talk to them, they should go away," he said.

Mr Sach said passengers also had a responsibility to respect drivers.

"We've also got to make the community aware that they should not be racist or discriminating against the driver," he said.

After September 11, some Melbourne cabbies of African and Arab descent were attacked by clients.

Worried cabbies were allowed to remove their surnames from identification cards.

Victorian Taxi Operators Group president Geoff Bell said the proposals created the potential for over-zealous inspectors to victimise drivers.

"No one wants to get into a cab and have a ratbag rave on but people have got to have freedom of speech," Mr Bell said.

He said there were easier ways to avoid conflict.

"When I drive a cab, I vote for every political party and barrack for every footy team," Mr Bell said.

"It's easier than getting into an argument."

A government source said the proposed code reflected existing company rules designed for passenger comfort.

"It's not something driven by Big Brother government," the source said.

A spokesman for the Victorian Taxi Directorate, the State Government's taxi regulator, said the document was being prepared for a working party of drivers, industry leaders and bureaucrats.

"This document is in an early draft format and no recommendations from this document have been presented to the Victorian Government," the spokesman said.

A source said the document would go before the working party next month.

[Aussie Dasher]

And not before time!

Some of these guys are positively scary!!!

[ncountylee]

Not as big a concern in NYC. Cabbies rarely speak English.

[Aussie Dasher]

LOL. Yeah, we've got a bit of that, too. Nothing quite like being sworn at in Iranian!

[coconutt2000]

I had a great cabbie who was a big Bush supporter drive me to the airport.

He considers himself a political refugee from Socialist Europe.

[hoagy62]

I live in liberal-infested Seattle. The shuttle company I work for has a "no-talking-politics-or-else" policy. They enforced it before the '04 elections. Had a few conservative drivers start saying they supported Bush, and had a few guests called to demand the drivers' jobs due to their Republican leanings.

Here in Seattle, if you aren't liberal, you have no right to exist or hold a job.