Taxi and For-Hire Vehicle (FHV) drivers today expressed optimism that the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) will exercise both its moral authority and regulatory powers to address the ongoing challenges facing drivers.
They urged the commission to take decisive action to resolve the persistent issues of financial hardship, low wages, and industry instability for the benefit of drivers and the broader transportation sector.
Testifying at the City Council Rules Committee hearing on the nomination of Midori Valdivia as the new Chair of the TLC, drivers voiced hope that the commission, under new leadership, will work to break the cycle of crisis, mounting debt, low pay, and long working hours affecting thousands of drivers.
NYC Mayor nominated TLC Commissioner Midori Valdivia for the position, and representatives from the New York Taxi Workers Alliance (NYTWA), which represents nearly 28,000 taxi and FHV drivers across the city, were among those present at the hearing.
The drivers put forward a set of recommendations that includes Immediate Raise to Absorb Insurance, Fuel Costs + Regulation of FHV Rental Market + Restructuring of Last Medallion Loans Under City-backed guarantee and Restore Monies for WAV Mandate.
“The hearing was for the nominee, but the day belonged to the drivers,” according to the statement issued here today.
Carmen Cruz testified that in over 25 years, she hasn’t seen change. One step forward, two steps back. Veronica Martinez gave voice to FHV renters burdened by high leases and working under the gun to make payments to companies like American Leasing that can turn off the car remotely – in the middle of the street – and fill the car with piercing sound that could lead to deafness or vertigo, all just to shake down a driver for a payment.
Wain Chin testified about the burden of yellow cab drivers paying for $80,000 WAVs after losing TIF grants, having $1,000 insurance payments, and $2,000 medallion loans. Richard Chow put a spotlight on the fuel crisis and on his brothers and sisters, like speaker Adriano, who still haven’t had their medallion debt forgiveness, leaving them with over $10K more in mortgage payments compared to drivers who had their loan restructured under the city guarantee program the union won.
Shameless Empower Circus
In that moment that belonged to the drivers, unexpectedly, the CEO of Empower shamelessly appeared virtually on the critical City Council hearing to announce ex-TLC Commissioner David Do would be joining as the lobbyist for their illegal operation. Empower was looking to take the spotlight away from the drivers and turn a serious hearing into a circus with their breaking news.
Empower is not a lifeline for drivers; it’s a trap. Empower’s business model leaves the costs of the sales tax, BCF surcharge, MTA taxes, and other fees to the drivers to shoulder. When Uber and Lyft did the same, it took us 10 years of lawsuits and an action to recover at least $328 million of the wage theft. Worse, there is uncertainty about whether Empower-dispatched trips are covered by insurance in case of an accident. Empower forces drivers to take the risks and bear the costs, all while selling their illegal operation like it’s some goldmine for drivers.
The real solution to drivers being unpaid is not Empower’s illegal business, it’s to require Uber and Lyft to pay drivers more.
Driver Demands
Immediately, we need an adjustment to help all drivers pay for the increase in fuel and insurance – for some drivers, the monthly premium is going from $400 to $1,000. Yellow cab drivers need their (Taxicab Improvement Fund) trip payments and grants restored to help cover the costs of operating a wheel-chair accessible mandate, which Empower’s David Do cut, a loss of over $3,000 in annual income for most cabbies. Uber and Lyft drivers have been stuck with incremental adjustments for inflation that are not even tied to industry-specific expenses, while luxury drivers are stuck at Uber X pay rates. Companies, without notice, downgrade vehicles to cut drivers out of higher pay and take the lion’s share.
And all TLC drivers need retirement and an income guarantee that honors the long hours, expenses, and dangers of the job – a “prevailing livable income” like construction workers and now security guards who must be paid more than the minimum wage.
Once the TLC Commissioner is confirmed by the Council, all this work for generational change can begin.
Empower, Waymo, Uber, Lyft, and the company need to heed our words. Today’s Council hearing on the nomination of Midori Valdivia to Chair the TLC must be the beginning of a new era for this workforce of 100,000 New Yorkers who serve close to one million people every single back-breaking day.
The days of nickel and diming drivers into crisis and debt are over. We won’t let any company degrade, weaken, bypass, or erode the protection we have built with our blood and sweat.
And we won’t let any private or public – city, state, federal – force stand in the way of recognizing our humanity and the inevitability of our victories.