Vol. 77/No. 47      December 30, 2013

The agreement was concluded in talks the previous day between company officials and ATA representatives. Some 70 drivers waited outside on the spot where they had picketed all week. They held placards that described the airport company as “bloodsuckers” and explained, “We are working below $4 an hour” (US$3.32).

The airport is a publicly listed company nearly a quarter owned by the Auckland City Council.

Singh explained that the dispute stemmed from changes made by the airport in March — especially shifting the “designated rank” to a more visible spot. This area is used by drivers who work for three large companies. They get fares from business travelers and other frequent flyers that can be charged to their employers. In contrast, the striking drivers are restricted to the “main rank,” where they depend on casual fares from arriving travelers. Competition for those fares has increased since the designated rank moved much closer to the main rank.

Main rank drivers saw their fares drop by as much as 50 percent, Singh said. “You have to wait four to five hours for a fare,” he explained. With a 70-hour workweek, drivers typically take home less than $4 an hour, after forking out money for their license, airport tariffs, car payments, fuel costs and insurance.

Airport officials have agreed to post signs inside the terminal that direct people wanting taxis to a door that opens onto the main rank. “It’s a victory over a bully corporation,” said Singh.

The drivers had also demanded an end to “summary justice” from airport security. While on the main rank, Singh said, “You can’t eat in the cab; you can’t go to the toilet.”

The ATA was formed in October to discuss these grievances with the Auckland Airport Company, Singh said. After a one-day strike in November — triggered by the action of a security guard in sending home a driver who had used an airport toilet — the company agreed to provide drivers with more facilities. These points are included in the new agreement.

In addition to wide coverage in the media, the picketing drivers won backing from the First Union, and toots of approval from many travelers and workers in the area. Drivers for the three larger designated rank companies were guarded in their comments to the Militant during the stoppage.

One striker, who declined to be named, said several such drivers had told him they sympathized with the action.
 
 
Related articles:
Standing up has made us stronger, say workers locked out by Kellogg
On the Picket Line
Revolutionary potential of working class in the U.S.
Does election of Seattle socialist, unionists in Ohio strengthen labor?
 
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home