The lives of Korean taxi drivers who have fallen out of the middle class- To drive a taxi is to be a kind of slave

The lives of Korean taxi drivers who have fallen out of the middle class- To drive a taxi is to be a kind of slave
The lives of taxi drivers who have fallen out of the middle class
Posted on : Feb.17,2013 09:37 KST

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http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/574160.html

To drive a taxi is to be a kind of slave

Part 3　
At exactly 3:30am on Jan 22, taxi number 9704 arrived in its garage in the Myeonmok neighborhood of Seoul. 10 hours and 50 minutes had passed since its departure the day before. After getting out of his taxi, Mr. Choi opened the window of the scheduling office to deposit the 188,440 won (US$ 173.05) he made during 11 hours of labor. While other companies enforce polices where only about 120,000 won (US$110) must be turned over while the rest of drivers’ earnings can be kept, Mr. Choi’s company requires that all earnings be turned over in return for a monthly salary and extra incentives. The ‘B’ Taxi company drivers will normally deposit 2.3 million won (US$2110) a month and receive an average 1.1 million won (US$1010.15) as their earnings. If the driver deposits more than the standard 2.3 million won (US$2110), then the driver receives rated incentives commensurate with the extra amount.
This policy is more humane than the system of drivers paying 120,000 won each day.
A driver may rest if he is sick under the policy where he can keep his daily earnings; however, under the policy where 120,000 won (US$110) has to be paid to the company daily, the driver must pay with his own money if the daily earnings aren’t enough. Regardless, over 90% of the 260 taxi companies in Seoul enforce the policy where 120,000 won must be turned over daily. Even though drivers who work for ‘B’ Taxi Company, are in a difficult situation themselves, they feel sympathy for drivers who must pay 120,000 won every day.
Kim Soo-Young, 53, (not his real name) is preparing a lawsuit against a taxi company that owns about 130 taxis and is located in the Gangbuk district. The company required each driver to turn over 120,000 extra 3000 won (US$2.73) ‘new-automobile charge’, and a 1000 won credit card commission fee. The ‘new-automobile charge’ requires the drivers to pay their share for new taxis bought and owned by the company, a cruel extra burden on them. The widely popular system that allow the customers to pay by credit card requires a ‘commission fee’, which the drivers have to pay.
Mr. Kim doesn’t understand what right the company has to charge the drivers these extra fees. The amount that must be turned over daily to the company is on the contract approved by the union leader. However, the ‘new-automobile charge’ and the card commission fee aren’t in the agreement. On top of that, the drivers sometimes don’t receive their annual vacation, which is guaranteed by law.
The taxi union, who should fight for the drivers, has not taken action despite knowing the situation. On the contrary, the union acts as a collaborator against the laborers. “Taxi drivers are essentially slaves for the company CEO. The union leader also uses us as slaves for his own gain. Why do taxi drivers not take action despite knowing the grim reality? It’s because we are busy surviving day by day. I used to speed up to 180-190km/h. I wasn’t afraid of accidents, I was afraid of not being able to put food on the table. I wish I could take all my passengers, and refuse sharing taxis between customers. But sometimes it’s just not possible because I have to earn money too.” Mr. Kim is currently collecting information that will help him change his ‘slave status’. He is planning a class action lawsuit with his co-workers.
At Kim’s company, there is a policy called 1 car per person. The company grants a taxi to a driver for a month and receives 150,000 won (US$137) daily. The driver works 24-hour shifts without a partner and parks the taxi at the side of the road to take a nap. “I’ve seen people who were close to death from overwork,” says Kim. “We usually eat kimbap [seaweed roll snack] for our meals, use gas station bathrooms, and keep clothes in the trunk. Taxis that are parked on the Riverside Expressway are all under the 1 car per person policy. Some of those drivers earn as much as 3 million won (US$2750) per month.”
Taxi drivers do not see any hope of reaching the middle class. In order to improve the low-income structure for drivers, taxi fares should be raised. But in order for this to occur, the number of taxis has to be reduced. In order to change from the system by which drivers must pay 120,000 won to a deposit system where drivers can keep their daily earnings, the labor management and unions have to make a bold decision.
Returning back to its garage, Mr. Choi did not turn off the ignition of his 9704 taxi. “If I turn off the ignition, the water on the windows freezes, so I often don’t turn it off during winter.” South Korea’s taxi drivers live day-to-day life unable to turn off their poverty.