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City Joins UTW’s Lawsuit
To Recover Gate Overcharges

The City of San Francisco has successfully intervened in support of United Taxicab Workers’ lawsuit against three cab companies to recover gate overcharges.

Judge Donald Mitchell granted the city’s request after a July 31 hearing on the matter. The judge’s order states, “The City has a direct and immediate interest in protecting its taxicab policy . . . And in maintaining the integrity of the actions and reports of its Controller. ”

The Controller has indicated in two reports that companies have been violating the gate cap. The cap was set at $91.50 in 2003, but reverted to $85 in September 2004, because the City had not enacted a promised health care plan for cab drivers that was a condition for maintaining the higher cap.

UTW and three cab drivers brought the lawsuit against Yellow, Luxor and Speck cab companies after the companies refused to negotiate over the violations. Speck runs Arrow Cab, and formerly managed Veterans Cab.

The Board of Supervisors raised the gate cap back to $91.50 as of last November, but Yellow and Luxor continue to violate the cap, charging an average of $92.50 a shift.

Yellow is pushing its drivers to sign a new lease requiring them to prepay for their shifts by the month and submit to other onerous conditions not contained in the old lease. It has said it will discontinue the new lease if UTW drops its lawsuit. UTW has offered to negotiate a settlement of the lawsuit, but refuses to drop it outright.