OttawaOttawa’s Blue Line Taxi drivers are set to hit the picket line Friday afternoon after their union and the taxi company reached an impasse over increases to the monthly fee the company charges drivers.Union and the taxi company at an impasse over increases to the monthly fee the company charges driversOttawa’s Blue Line Taxi drivers are set to hit the picket line at 2:30 p.m. after their union and the taxi company failed to strike a new deal. (Melanie Campeau/CBC)Ottawa’s Blue Line Taxi drivers are set to strike Friday afternoon after their union and the taxi company reached an impasse over increases to the monthly fee the company charges drivers.Almost 94 per cent of taxi drivers voted to walk of the job and will be on the picket line as of 2:30 p.m., the union Unifor said in a news release.The strike affects 494 full-time drivers at Blue Line, with potential impacts across other Ottawa taxi services.Unifor said Blue Line walked away from the bargaining table following a counterproposal presented to the taxi company’s final offer. It also said Blue Line’s demand of a 20 per cent increase in taxi stand fees is “unacceptable and unfair” when taxi drivers are already struggling to get by.”A massive stand fee hike is a direct pay cut for drivers,” said Local 1688 President Bahdon Issa. “Our members have shown overwhelming support for fair bargaining, and we will not accept an employer that refuses to meet us at the table and tries to impose its own terms.”Stand rent has not kept up with inflation, Blue Line saysMarc André Way, chief operating officer of dispatcher Coventry Connections, said the previous agreement with Unifor ended in January and that negotiations were at a standstill after eight months.Way said Blue Line got the strike notice at 6 p.m. Thursday — less than 24 hours before the strike is supposed to happen.He said Coventry is not locking out drivers and that it will be “business as usual” as it will continuing to provide dispatch services.Documents sent to drivers from Blue Line said stand rent for 2025 is $435 per month, and that the company is increasing it to $550 per month now, $600 in 2026, and $650 by 2027.The document also said the proposed stand rent increase is “fair, modest, and essential” as it has not kept up with inflation for over a decade.”That represents an increase of about $3.50 a day,” Way told CBC. “I gather that they are going to go on strike for $3.50 a day.”Way said this only affects Blue Line, and not other fleets like Capital Taxi, Westway Taxi, and taxis with contracts with ParaTranspo.Way added he doesn’t anticipate that all 494 Blue Line drivers will be on the picket line.ABOUT THE AUTHORNathan Fung is a reporter with CBC Ottawa, with a strong interest in covering municipal issues. He has previously worked as a reporter in Hamilton and Edmonton. You can reach him at nathan.fung@cbc.caWith files from Elyse Skura and Natalia Goodwin.
Blue Line Taxi drivers set to strike Friday afternoon
