New taxi company licensed. With conditions

The Sault Ste. Marie City Police Services Board had decided to grant Rick Waite, a former owner of 7500 Taxi, a license to operate a new taxi company at 1137 People's Road with four conditions.

Three of those conditions require Waite to provide proof he has met certain sections of the Taxi Bylaw.

He will be required to present proof that the telephone and radio systems he agreed to install at 1137 People's Road have been installed as agreed.

Waite will also be required to a letter of agreement from his insurance company stating the company, cars and drivers will be insured for a sufficient amount.   

One of the conditions should effectively avoid labour relations issues former employees of 7500 Taxi were at the police board meeting to raise today.

If Waite is to secure a license to operate seven taxis out of 1137 People's Road he will have to agree that all the drivers are employed by the new company, Yellow Cab, and none are independent contractors.

At a hearing today, board members heard from former 7500 Taxi employees who opposed the license based on Waite's labour relations performance while in charge of 7500 Taxi.

Ray Dawson told board members he was employed as a cab driver with 7500 Taxi and during that time Waite actively obstructed Ministry of Labour efforts to bring the company into conformity with the Ontario Labour Relations Act.

He said Waite even went so far as to start a process implicating Dawson to Revenue Canada for not paying GST.

It was found Dawson was not responsible to pay while working for 7500 Taxi because he was an employee and not an independent contractor, Dawson said.

He said Revenue Canada tried to take his house and it took him two years to convince Revenue Canada he was an employee of 7500 Taxi, not an independent contractor with the company. 

Even while the Ontario Ministry of Labour found that Dawson and several other employees of the taxi company were employees and not independent contractors and should have received vacation pay, minimum wage and that 7500 Taxi should have been contributing to the Canada Pension Plan on behalf of those employees.

"There is a personal issue here and I freely acknowledge that," said Dawson. "But these issues are much bigger than that."

He said he believes the company is still operating under a similar format, shorting its drivers thousands of dollars and abusing the Labour Relations Act.

Dawson said he believes Rick Waite will conduct business the same at the new company.

"It shouldn't be allowed to continue," he said.

A current employee of 7500 Taxi, Mark Brown, defended the application to the board.

He said there are other avenues taxi drivers can pursue if they feel they have been wronged by a taxi company and that a perspective taxi company owner's history with labour relations doesn't really doesn't have any relevance to the board's decision.

"I'm not speaking for or against Mr. Waite, I'm speaking in favour of the company's application," Brown said. "If the company fulfills all the requirements, as it seems to, then it should be granted the license."

Brown also said that things have changed a lot for the drivers over recent times as the number of cars in 7500 Taxi's fleet have declined, making it easier for drivers to make a living wage. 

The board also heard concerns about sufficient parking at the address and how those concerns were addressed by Mr. Waite.