The Public Transport Operators’ Union (PUTON) with the digital taxi association of Kenya, Rideshare Sacco Limited and the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU-K) presented a petition to the senate on 7 June 2018.
After bringing together Nairobi’s ride-hailing associations last September, PUTON urged the senate to pay attention to the demands of stakeholders in the taxi industry. The petition demanded amendments to out-dated legislation in order to ensure fair competition, promote safety for passengers and improve working conditions for drivers.
The petition comes after months of protests in Nairobi by drivers calling for better working conditions at Uber, Taxify, Little Cab, Mondo and Maramoja.
“We have been working hard to promote unity within the associations that represent taxi drivers, many of whom are our members. We shall continue to make these demands until the online taxi sector is sanitised with sound regulatory backing”, said PUTON general secretary Fenus Okonji.
ITF Africa deputy regional secretary Anna Karume said: “Nairobi has seen a number of protests against the practices of these app-based companies, therefore this petition comes at the right time to demand better legislation and avoid more problems in future.”
