Non-Medallion Drivers Carry Fight Against Bandit Limos

By Bud Hazelkorn
UTW Chair

Cab drivers packed the Redstone Labor Temple theater at 16th and Capp streets on June 12, learning and trading ideas about how to slow the infestation of illegal limousines that have robbed San Francisco cab drivers of a big chunk of their earnings this year. Guest speakers were Taxi Commission Executive Director Jordanna Thigpen and SFPD Taxi Detail Sgt. Ron Reynolds, who both stayed well past the scheduled finish to pursue the animated discussion.

“Illegal limousines have become untenable since last year,” Thigpen said. Reynolds called the situation ‘‘out of control." Not only are hotels throughout the city ...

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Prop K Working Group Focuses on Transferability, Medallion Auctions

Editor'17;s note: In light of the probable disbanding of the Taxi Commission and the transfer of its powers to the Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA), United Taxicab Workers’ Chair Bud Hazelkorn recently sent the following letter to MTA Executive Director Nathaniel Ford:

Dear Mr. Ford,
We at United Taxicab Workers very much appreciated meeting with you and Mss. Johnson and Boomer in your office recently. We have great

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A Personal Statement:
How SF Officials
Disrespect Our Labor
Or
It's Been A Long Time
Since Harry Bridges
by Dave Schneider
We have worth. We are entitled to dignity and to be treated fairly.
Here's some of the value of our labor:
We take folks to the doctor, train station, fancy stores and restaurants, the airport and out to party at the clubs. We even drive them to City Hall, although perhaps we should know better. A full time cab driver may drive 35,000 miles a year, carry in excess of 7,000 passengers per annum and pay the company about $25,000 annually. And that doesn't include the gas we have to buy.
And what benefits do we get?
Yup, when the Supervisors patronize us they call us the city's ambassadors of good will, but they treat us like trash and we don't have the benefits of other workers, like the employees of Sunset Scavenger.
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New Rules Allow Reconsideration Of Denied Medallion Applications

The Taxi Commission has adopted new rules to implement recent legislation easing the driving requirement for medallion applicants.

Under legislation passed in 2004, the applicants’ driving requirement has been increasing year-by-year. But in response to complaints that applicants were not given adequate notice of the new requirements when they went into effect, Supervisor Chris Daly recently sponsored legislation pushing forward the start of the increased requirement. That had the effect of reducing the current requirement by one year.

The new rules allow medallion applicants who were denied or removed from the waiting list in 2005 or later for failure to meet the driving requirement to reapply.

The applicant must have held a valid A-card since the time the application was denied, must meet the current driving requirement for the year in which the application was originally considered and must meet all other current requirements for obtaining a medallion.

Former applicants who wish to reapply must do so by coming to the commission office and submitting an application by Oct. 1. Applicants approved for reconsideration will go to the top of the waiting list.

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Appeals Board Upholds Revocation Against Driver Convicted of DUI's

The Board of Appeals has unanimously upheld the Taxi Commission's revocation of the A-card and medallion of Robert Michael Friedman, a long-time driver and medallion holder who has been convicted at least three times for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Friedman had three DUI convictions between 1999 and 2001. He was arrested again for the crime in 2006, and has completed an alcohol rehabilitation program in connection ...

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New Rules Allow Reconsideration
Of Denied Medallion Applications
Luxor Cab has stopped charging drivers for credit card transactions processed by the company after United Taxicab Workers complained to the Taxi Commission about the practice.
The company was not charging its gates-and-gas drivers for processing credit charges, but was imposing a five percent surcharge on drivers of other cabs using the company’s color scheme.
After UTW’s complaint, the commission’s Acting Executive Director, Jordanna Thigpen, talked with Luxor management, which agreed to discontinue the practice.

Bay Cab Fined, Agrees to Provide
Workers’ Comp for All its Cabs
The Taxi Commission has upheld a hearing officer’s decision fining Bay Cab $1,425 for rules violations and requiring the company to obtain workers’ compensation coverage for all its drivers within 60 days.
Bay’s attorney, David Green, argued that the company shouldn’t have to provide workers’ comp under California law, but that it would comply with the decision nonetheless.
Bay is the second company that has agreed to provide workers’ comp on all its cabs after a hearing officer’s decision. Regents Cab made the same pledge earlier this year.