Sharjah Union Taxi drivers strike against target increase

Over 300 Union Taxi drivers in Sharjah staged a peaceful protest against the increase in their monthly target by the company yesterday, while Citi Taxi drivers continued their strike for the second day.

Asma Ali Zain

Published: Wed 4 Jan 2006, 10:00 AM

Last updated: Tue 15 Nov 2022, 9:53 AM

The Union taxi drivers who had stopped ferrying passengers from 1pm, parked their vehicles in front of King Faisal Mosque bringing public transport to a halt in the emirate. Though their main demand was that the monthly target be brought back to the earlier Dh7,500 per month from the increased target of Dh9,000, the drivers also complained of many other irregularities.

The group, that was protesting peacefully, was dispersed after police and company officials arrived on the scene. The officials asked the drivers to work according to the company rules or take the issue to the labour court. They also asked the drivers to hand over the car keys to the administration and clear their accounts if they did not wish to continue working for the company.

Speaking to Khaleej Times, a company official at the spot said: 'We are trying to solve their problems but we do not agree with their way of protesting. The matter can be resolved in the office or even the labour court.'

It was also decided that five representatives of the drivers should meet with the office management and also visit the labour court to have the issue resolved.

Earlier, Abdullah Sultan, General Manager of CARS Taxi, said: 'Not all the drivers are involved in the protest. We are working towards solving their problems.'

'Even if we drive for 14 hours continuously, we cannot meet the target that has been set up by the company now,' said one driver.

Added another one: 'We demand that the target be brought back to the one we signed in the contract, i.e. Dh7,500, because it is impossible to meet the new target in a place like Sharjah. We are not allowed to carry passengers from Ajman or Dubai, and in Sharjah it is not possible to generate this much money.'

Citing similar working conditions to those of Dubai Transport drivers, the Union Taxi drivers said that earlier, they were given a 30 per cent commission only if they raised a sum of Dh7,500 in a month.

'We have to pay Dh500 for our uniforms, besides which there are unnecessary deductions from our salary. We are not even provided with any housing facilities by the company,' complained one driver.

'We are fined for accidents, and you know why there are many accidents? It's because we do not sleep for more than two hours a day in order to meet the target. Most of us are ready to have our visas cancelled so that we can leave the country,' he added.

Union Taxi belongs to the CARS Taxi group that also operates as Citi Taxi in Sharjah.

Meanwhile, Citi Taxi drivers continued their protest since negotiations with company officials reached a dead end on the second day of the strike. Most drivers parked their vehicles at the company offices while lack of parking space forced some to take their taxis to Ajman.

For commuters in Sharjah, the past two days have proved difficult. 'I take a taxi to go to work each day, but there has been no taxi available since yesterday. Private taxis have hiked their fares knowing that there is a shortage of taxis,' said an office goer. He added that travelling, even within the emirate has become difficult because of the strike by the taxi drivers.