Taxi Driver Online

Right, erm... I just want to pop in here somehow with a sort of question concerning strike.

Well, such a bad word, isn´t? (Yet, also, such bad times, right?)
I mean, I have just recently posted on the German cab-forum, well, basically a naive question why anybody is moaning, yet no one is acting, that is to say, go on strike, just for example.
(http://www.taxiforum.de/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6480)

The result was not too bad, the matter is any case likely to draw attention, yet there was no one really much into it.

Now, you see, the German word for strike derives from the English word, actually, and is just written like you would pronounce it in German, "Streik". Moreover we all know that strikes are not very common in Germany, whereas I just have to think about my time in Brighton, where I had witnessed enough wild-cat-strikes and blockades, yet which led to nothing, only resulting in making everybody else angry.

In Germany, although economy is doing fine now, the trade is very much down to the bottom, almost to the extent it can´t get any worse. There are just too many people with too small an income, nowadays.

Still, in general English cabbies tend to go on strike much more often than their German colleagues, I mean, if you look in the search index on this very forum you´ll find 491 matches for strike, whereas you´ll only find 49 matches in the German one, which is by a weird coincidence exactly only a tenth.

So, I´d like to ask you just in between, for it would take to long for me to read all the 491 matches, what is your opinion on a taxi-strike currently?

Would that be something worth considering?
No point in it?
Is there even something like a cab-strike all over England feasible?
On what terms would such a thing take place, anyway?

Now, the worst single grievance in the trade in Germany is the fact that there are just too many licences on the market and the authorities are even much less strict then they are in England, when it comes to regulation almost to the point of being completely uninterested. In Switzerland it is even worse. It is against the idea of free trade and therefore against the law to do any restrictions.

Moreover, I have seen a lot of threads to regulation here, "restricted taxi numbers", but then again I would be glad if someone could just summon it up to me.
(I know that there are definitely too much licences all over England too.)
So what means of pressure could cab-drivers use in England to get rid of surplus licences?

By the way, do you know of an existing Facebook group about this?
I mean, I have founded one just two days ago, one in German and one in English, but it would be ridiculous to ask you to join it, if there are ones already prospering, I could just join them.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/231843216836433?ap=1

So, anyway, I´d be happy about some response and maybe some answers to my many questions here, regards, Jochen.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

They are seldom that successful, but in a way they often get the trade together.

I think a strike is good when everyone is agreed on the strike, if you don't get that agreement then those working clear up. Which in itself leads to friction amongst drivers.

But the answer is to make the threat seriously, make sure the press know about it, and hope the other side cave in before the strike.

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IDFIMH

There are many ways to get your message across and a strike always upsets more than the people you want to take notice

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Yeah, just in between, me personally, I think the most effective thing about it is to get enough people gathered behind something, saying, if we don´t get this through, we go on strike. If the strike is then inevitable, something has not worked out quite right, though it might be necessary to pull it through nevertheless.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

If you go on strike... you only end up losing money for yourself and your colleagues... you are much better off holding a small protest for say... one hour... blocking the entrance to your local councils car-parks.... bring the council to a stop...

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

at MR T: I dunno, I dunno, you know, when I just come to think of it, what we basically need is something creative and new, something that will break through the circle of anger and revenge and anger again. I have just gotten an idea, what about something unusual, something UNEXPECTED!

Now, what behaviour do people generally expect from a cab-driver?
Right, a cab-driver doesn´t t do anything without payment, most of the taxis, most of the Lady of the Night, are only taking calls for cash, lala (Dire Straits)

So, why don´t we do something tremendously unexpected, tremendously unheard of from a cab-driver - we take people and drive them around for free!
Just for one hour!
Anywhere in the country!
Just to make a point!

The message is, we want to be heard, we want to make a point!
Now how about that!?

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

Yeah, I know this all sounds a bit fantastic, like something you would expect from a guy who writes unauthorised sequels to the Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy, yet at the end of the day, if you think it through, it´s surely better than anything else. Just a thought!

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

Truthfully!! it sounds like you're just waiting for the next rocket ship to Mars....

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

Well, maybe I´m just a dreamer, but I´m not the only one, lala

Well, sad, that people with initiative become rocket engineers or space-pilots, whereas people with patience like a mule qualify alright for our job.
Makes it very unlikely there´ll ever be any change, namely.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

If you want change ... The first thing you need to do... is organise the drivers so that you speak with one voice... and the same time learn the rules and regulations that local bureaucrats have to abide by.... and then by using intelligence. use that system to speak for your members....

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

Do you work for the Council, because that would be a massive coup for them. I doubt if you would be getting any sympathy from the freebie loaders because they would just love that, with an additive to the local council......................pleeeeese would you keep on doing to the drivers whatever it is you are doing.

Sorry mate you have been out in the sun too long.

As Mr T said....................but I would do it for a lot longer than an hour.............annnnnnnd it would be at peak times.

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if you cannot be yourself, then who can you be.

No, don´t get me wrong, sorry my bad, I didn´t take enough time yesterday to do this right.

Of course the freebies would be linked to conditions, that is, flyers, talk, and a signature, at a collection of signatures to whatever is on top to be demanded, in Germany, right now, it´s the over-capacity of licences.

So, it´s free ride for signature - otherwise payment as usual.
Yet, if you succeed in doing this nationwide, with enough massive campaigning and hype in the media before and after, you will get your demands through.

Now, look on the other side, what will happen especially with blockades.
See, there is much more road-rage against cabbies in England than elsewhere, I sure can tell that, and perhaps it´s a result of this. Too many blockades and no proper campaigning before. So when this is not handled skillfully you´ll just end up on the wrong side.

And guess what you will get from the media and from the public, even if handled with precaution and skill. Another blockade, another strike by angry cab-drivers, another traffic jam at peak-time, yeah, and there are demands.

Whereas if you do something which would take everybody by surprise, not by expressing your anger, but by request for sympathy, you´ll win everybody´s heart and sympathy.

If such a thing would be pulled through, just theoretically now, we would succeed, I guarantee you that. With a massive strike... dunno, mate.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

It must be different for you over there.... from past experience over here, as long as the general public have prior knowledge as to what is taking place, we usually find a great deal of support.... to the extent that they often join in....... if you blocked the entrance to the local councils staff car park... the staff are sent home... the council comes to stop... and the council employees have a paid day off......

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

The trade in general is much better organised in England, whereas public transport works better in Germany. Cab trade in Brighton is paradise compared to Freiburg, public transport rubbish.

There was also much, much more collegiality among drivers in Brighton and politeness and etiquette. Also, it is much more regulated by the council and 5 times as many customers per inhabitant. Cars were nicer and cleaner, technical standards higher, (call-back, f.ex).

Obviously this is owned to a certain readiness to go on strike and I absolutely don´t speak against that, yet, maybe there is even something better?

Anyway, all the 18 months in Zurich I regretted leaving England again so soon and I was actually planning on coming back January, then made a last minute decision (this is to be taken literally for I had bought a train ticket to London and I decided against going one hour before it left, so the ticket expired) not to come. But I will, sooner or later, this is for sure.

I mean, there are other countries I want to got next, yet it is very unlikely I will go back to Germany after that. Brighton is pretty much on top of the list of places right now I´d like to settle down. But you never know, do you.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)

What I´m doing now, on my thread on the German cab-forum, is to point out to you, lads. When it comes to solidarity and collegiality, German cabbies could learn a lot from their English ones.

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Jochen Lembke, Europe´s cab-driving writer and author of the best Hitch-hiker´s-Guide-to-the-Galaxy-volume-six ever written. Or else money back (haha.)