Taxi Driver Online

Same old, same old, but at least the couriers get a mention here

No word of the HCDs, though


Taxi drivers 'risking lives for £30 a day due to lack of financial support'

https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news ... ts-section

'We have no choice but to carry on working, despite the risks of which we are only too aware'


Image: Leicester Mercury

A city taxi driver claims he and his colleagues are “risking their lives” to earn as little as £30 a day because there is no pandemic-related financial support available to them.

Leicester drivers have co-signed a letter to city mayor Sir Peter Soulsby asking for the city council to make Covid support payments available to gig workers, who are independent contractors and other workers who exist outside the traditional employer-employee relationship.

The letter reads: “Unfortunately, the pandemic has pushed workers like us, who are private hire and couriers’ workers, to the brink of financial crisis. We have been unable to claim a furlough allowance and there are issues with the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme.

“As a result, many of us have had no choice but to continue working through the crisis, and we are lucky to earn £30 per day gross.

“For this, we risk our lives, and we have no choice but to carry on working, despite the risks of which we are only too aware.

“The ONS [Office for National Statistics] earlier this year identified that private hire drivers face one of the highest fatality rates of all occupations.”

The letter, distributed by the App Drivers and Couriers Union, was written by president Yaseen Aslam.

He said: “Elsewhere in the country, grants and support have been made available, but not in Leicester.

“It’s a worrying time for our members. Their income is down. The way people use taxis has changed a lot during the pandemic, and a lot of them have gone from working 70-80 hours a week to earning barely £30 a day.

“Most of our drivers and local members are also from BAME communities who are more vulnerable to the virus, but feel they have to work because they have no other option.

“We understand that the Leicester City Council has received additional Covid-19 funding from central government for emergency distribution to workers like us, who have fallen between the cracks.

“We respectfully ask that the council ensures funding is reserved for licensed private hire drivers and couriers and grants are made available as soon as possible so that high-risk workers like us can afford to stay off the road and out of danger during this public health crisis.”

LeicestershireLive has asked the city council for comment.

Certainly issues with SEISS, but it's worth a lot of money to some, so a bit more info would be useful. Or maybe they think it best not to say too much


Makes a change from blowhards grossly overstating income. But it's a strange way to put it