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TLPATHE TAXICAB, LIMOUSINE & PARATRANSIT ASSOCIATION’S YEAR IN REVIEW - 2007
On October 10, 2006, R. Brian Wier was elected President of the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association. Chief among the goals he set to accomplish in 2007 was to update the TLPA Strategic Plan and to restructure the TLPA office and staff to effectively implement the plan. Other goals centered around:
In one of his first activities as TLPA president Brian met with James Simpson, Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. President Wier gave his practical experience on the difficulties that many private operators experience in the transit planning process and in developing new or restructured transportation services. He called on Administrator Simpson and FTA to issue a grant to TLPA to establish a training and technical assistance program designed to assist private operators to more effectively participate in programs funded by FTA, a request Mr. Simpson agreed to consider. Recently, in summarizing Brian Wier’s year as TLPA President, TLPA CEO Al LaGasse stated, “The programs Brian put in motion this year are the most proactive programs ever adopted by TLPA in the association’s 90 year history. By this new measuring stick, President Brian Wier has led TLPA to an exceptional year.” Following is a summary of President Brian Wier’s exceptional year in office.
One of President Wier’s major announcements made at the TLPA Annual Convention & Trade Show in Denver was that TLPA had just signed a contract to produce a web based taxicab driver training program. The contract was signed with the American Association of Airport Executives for the production of TLPA’s nine course program. Drivers will access the interactive courses through the Internet. The driver enhancement course will be designed to educate all drivers who have at least a rudimentary understanding of the English language. U.S. currency is required in order to establish a baseline taxicab driver service level for the industry. Each course will be approximately 30 minutes long and will end with a test to assure the driver understands the material. The test for each course will have approximately 25 questions. Each question will have at least three variations and will be presented in random order so that an answer key cannot be created. The courses will be developed at a fifth grade understanding of English. The testing for each course will require a 100% to pass. If the driver gives an incorrect answer then the computer program automatically reviews the misunderstood material with the driver and then gives the driver an opportunity to give the correct answer. A computer generated certificate will be issued to the driver upon the successful completion of the full course indicating the driver’s name, fleet affiliation, and date the certificate was earned. The courses will include:
TLPA members will be kept in the loop on the progress being made in the design of these courses and the timetable for drivers to begin taking the courses.
TLPA is creating a library of legal victories regarding labor issues for both employee and independent contractor matters at every level of government. We are collecting both administrative and court rulings. We are creating this library of labor victories to assist member operators when they are faced with a challenge. Many of our industry’s labor victories are unpublished cases or administrative decisions. If TLPA members forward all of their victories to the TLPA office then TLPA will have the best available database to assist members when they need to defend themselves on labor issues. If you have a ruling that is favorable to the for-hire vehicle industry (taxicab, limousine, sedan, airport shuttle, paratransit, nonemergency medical, etc.), please mail a clean copy to the TLPA office in Kensington, MD. If the ruling is available in electronic format then please e-mail the document to alagasse@tlpa.org. We are interested in all types of victories regarding labor issues, including, for example, an affirmation that drivers are legitimate independent contractors, or that employee/drivers are not subject to overtime wages. At the federal level, the cases most likely would involve the Internal Revenue Service (other than determination letters issued in response to From SS-8), the U.S. Department of Labor, or the National Labor Relations Board. At the state level, the cases most likely would involve the State Department of Labor, the State Workers Compensation Board, or the State Unemployment Commission. Civil cases ruling that a driver is not an employee are also important. There may also be other types of litigation that should also be included in the TLPA library of labor cases.
Jon E. Burkhardt, a Senior Study Director at WESTAT in Rockville, Maryland, authored a study for TLPA, "Business Growth Opportunities for TLPA Members: How to Use this Report to Grow and Diversify Your Business". Using background data and interviews with TLPA members, Mr. Burkhardt found the potential for a large amount of business for TLPA members among the major Federal funding programs for passenger transportation. The report notes that both demographic and business trends indicate that contracted programs will be an even greater source of business for TLPA members in the future. It states that the Federal government invests billions of dollars in programs for passenger transportation. Whereas the largest nine programs account for nearly 95 percent of the total funds available. There were about 72 programs offering funding for passenger transportation in 2006. Total annual Federal funding for these programs exceeds $2.6 billion, and state and local governments contribute more than that amount bringing total available passenger transportation funding to more than $5.5 billion per year. The study lists, from the perspective of TLPA’s members, key programs that can be considered both as those programs with the highest funding levels and those programs that have been most open to doing business with TPLA members. The programs that fit both of these criteria are:
This study can be accessed by TLPA members from the Members Only section of TLPA’s web site, www.tlpa.org. Harold Morgan, TLPA Director of Research & Education, submitted this article. He can be reached at (301) 984-5700. © 2015 TLC Magazine Online, Inc. |
