"In November 2023, we were told there would be big problems with the ride availability if the number of licenses was limited to 52,000; now they're using the same argument, but pushing to 80,000 drivers," pointed out Uber driver Vitaly Goodman. Before Canada had a minimum wage law in 1920, workers were exploited with long hours and low pay, lacking legal protection. Gig workers today face a similar, ugly situation. The difference now is that with the modern propaganda, misinformation, facts
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"If you're one of the venture capitalists who floated the loans to Uber to come up to Toronto, you've been reaping a pretty handsome reward, but that money has come out of the pockets of the people who provide the service, and it's come in out of the quality of life in the city of Toronto," said Gord Perks on December 10th. Photo: Taxi News “We have to fight hard to claw it all back, but we can do it“ Veteran Toronto Councillor Gord Perks unleashed on Uber and John Tory in an epic display of honesty and accuracy seldom experienced by jaded City Hall
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Mayor Olivia Chow presided over the Executive Committee meeting on
December 10th. Photo: Alexander Zdravko for Taxi News “Let’s give it another try…let’s see if we could do better” Uber’s influence in the Mayor’s office is not what it was when John Tory presided, it appears. At the close of the December 10th Executive Committee meeting, half of
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Toronto City Hall Photo: toronto.ca Two VHF items moved to after lunch Executive Committee – Meeting 19 Meeting Date and Status: December 10, 2024 – 9:30 AM – Scheduled (Preview) Location: Committee Room 1, City Hall/Video ConferencePublishing Status: Agenda Published
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Vass Bednar is Executive Director, Master of Public Policy in Digital Society at McMaster University and Host of 'LATELY' from the Globe and Mail. Image: ParlVu Aim is to extract the highest possible price using intrusive personal data Federal Members of Parliament appeared to be shocked by revelations about algorithmic pay processes as they were investigated at an Ethics Committee meeting on December 3rd. McMaster University’s
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Image: Gladki Gladki Planning Associates “Vehicle for Hire Public and Stakeholder Consultation and Summary” is available to read as a attachment to EX19.4 – 2024 Review of the Vehicle-for-Hire By-Law and Industry on Toronto’s website. The Vehicle for Hire review will be
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Earla Phillips and other members of Rideshare Drivers of Ontario held a press conference at Toronto City Hall on December 14th, 2023 to express their support for Toronto Council as it works to identify an improved system of licensing rideshare vehicles. There are too many people driving for money at present, Phillips says, which makes it difficult for anyone to earn a living wage. Photo: RDAO A.I.-driven pricing and pay is bad for drivers and customers With the release of its December 2024 report on “algorithmic pay,” the Rideshare Drivers Association of Ontario makes three recommendations: Introduction to the Rideshare Drivers’ Association of Ontario December, 2024
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Toronto's Hockey Hall of Fame. Is a city judged by the grandiosity of its buildings, or the industriousness of its workers? Photo: HHOF I dragged myself to the Committee meeting room and took my seat in the row of speakers. Everyone was there for the same reason: to ask for funds for their program from the limited Tourism budget. My group, Taxis on Patrol, was asking for $7,000 to help fund an annual program which presented awards to cab drivers that had helped improve safety on Toronto streets. It also had a strong impact on improving the often-tenuous relationships between the cab industry, the city, and police.
My favourite Taxis on Patrol (“TOPS”) story was of a driver who saw a woman being beaten by a man on the street. He swerved to the curb and threw open his front door: the woman jumped in, he auto-locked the doors and just kept driving.
In our most famous file, a driver had a mother in the back seat whose fevered baby had gone into convulsions. The driver contacted dispatch who contacted 911 who walked the driver through every step to restore the baby to consciousness – we actually got permission to release the dramatic 911 tape of that event, and when it was played for Metro Council, several of the councillors were crying at the end of it. The baby lived.
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Photo: Taxi News David Piccini, Esq. Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development Government of Ontario Subject: Urgent Action Needed to Address Labour Law Concerns for Gig Workers in Toronto Dear Minister Piccini, I hope this message finds you well. I am
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