Las Vegas edges closer to first taxi drivers strike in decades

Las Vegas has moved a step closer to its first taxi drivers’ strike in decades after drivers resoundingly rejected a second contract offer from Yellow Checker Star Transportation.

Officials at the Industrial Technical Professional Employees Union, which represents drivers at the second-largest local cab company, reported late Monday that about 70 percent of the approximately 1,100 ballots cast opted for rejection. The union did not disclose exact vote figures.

As a result, local union officials sent paperwork to their head office Tuesday that would secure final authorization for a strike that could make it tougher for tourists and conventioneers to get around town. Once the approval is given, which is generally a quick formality according to union senior international representative Paul Bohelski, drivers could walk off the job at the time of their choosing.

Although he held out the possibility of returning to bargaining, Bohelski said, “I think we have pretty well talked ourselves out. We’re going to take action at a time that’s appropriate that would have the greatest impact on their way of thinking.”

Yellow Checker Star director Jonathan Schwartz said, “We will continue work hard to reach to reach an agreement. We will make every reasonable effort to maintain service to the community.”

He declined to disclose details of the company’s internal plans to keep its cabs on the road.

The company holds one-fourth of the operating permits, known as medallions, that each cab must carry. The Nevada Taxicab Authority directors have empowered administrator Charles Harvey to issue immediately after a work stoppage as many as 30 emergency medallions to each of the 13 other cab brands. Normally, the number of medallions is fixed with temporary exceptions for certain large events.

So far, however, Harvey said he cannot predict how well this will fill any service gap.

“It all depends on how many drivers it affects,” he said. “Even if we have the capacity, there is a question if how quickly the companies could bring on the drivers to fill the cabs.”

About 400 of Yellow Checker Star’s 1,740 drivers do not belong to the union. And Bohelski suspects that some members would report to work despite the contract dispute, but did not estimate how many.

Harvey said that if a strike happened, the authority staff is prepared to add extra shifts to expedite permitting for drivers.

“We have prepared for all of the knowns,” he said. “It’s the unknowns we have to worry about.”

Contracts with drivers expired in September for Frias Transportation Management, which, with five brands, is Las Vegas’ largest cab company. Since then, the company has operated under the terms of the expired pacts.

“We are still in negotiations at the table and exchanging proposals,” CEO Mark James said. “We expect them to be fruitful.”

No vote on a new deal or a strike deadline has been set.

Officials at the United Steelworkers Union, representing Frias drivers, could not be reached for comment.

If Yellow Checker Star drivers strike, James said, “I think the interruption would be felt but controlled.”

He has read about local taxi strikes in the 1970s, but not experienced one firsthand.

All companies have drafted contingency plans to handle extraordinary situations, including work stoppages, he added. When the taxi authority first authorized the emergency strike medallions in October, Frias opposed the move, saying the company had unspecified backup plans.

Although the Yellow Checker Star contract proposal contained certain sweeteners, including a larger annual bonus pool, more unpaid leave days and no driver liability in the event of accidents, drivers showed little interest in them. What mattered most, Bohelski said, was that basic pay remained almost the same. Drivers start by keeping 39 percent of the fares they collect, and the percentage rises to 43 percent after the drivers have spent six years on the job. The only adjustment provided a raise to 41 percent after 12 months instead of the current 18 months.

Contact reporter Tim O’Reiley at
toreiley@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290.