Hyatt’s problems increase as chain is boycotted

by Katie Hammel on

The Hyatt hotel chain is facing more trouble after firing nearly 100 housekeepers and replacing them with contract workers. Though a rep for Hyatt has denied that the fired workers were “tricked” into training their replacements and were not given severance, it seems the public isn’t buying it.

Union officials at the Boston Taxi Drivers Association have said that the 1700 drivers in the union will boycott Hyatt Boston locations, refusing to pick-up or drop-off fares there, unless the housekeepers are reinstated. The Massachusetts Governor has even gotten in on the action, saying that unless Hyatt rehires the fired workers, he’ll direct all state employees to stay at other hotels.

In a letter he sent to the CEO of Hyatt, the Governor said that while he understood that tough economic times meant making tough decisions, he thought that the manner in which the staff was let go was “so inconsistent with the expressed values of the Hyatt organization and basic fairness” that he did not think that “any other remedy other than full reinstatement” was appropriate. He also said he didn’t wish to instate a boycott but that the workers were treated so unfairly that he had no choice but to do so.

Of course, Hyatt fired back, saying “We do not understand why the Governor is putting more Massachusetts jobs at risk instead of working with us to find jobs for employees affected by the realities of these unprecedented economic challenges.” Looks like neither side will be backing down, and the only people who’ll suffer will be the workers.

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Vermont cab driver offers “pay what you want” fares

by Katie Hammel on

Websites like eBay and Priceline let consumers pay what they want for everything from designer gowns to airline tickets. Now, if you live in Essex, Vermont, you can exercise that same financial control when it comes to taxi fares. Eric Hagen, a part-time cab driver has been offering “pay what you want” rides in his Recession Ride Taxi since June.

Hagen not only offers passengers the right to pay whatever they feel is fair for the ride, he also applies his unique pricing model to cold drinks available in the cab, and offers a “frequent rider” punch card. After 7 paid rides, your next trip is free.

The local Days Inn now uses Hagen to transport guests to the airport whenever possible, and Hagen says he has been so successful that he’s thinking about expanding and hiring more drivers. He says no one has undercut him, though he has been paid with items like a $10 grocery card and a music CD.

Unfortunately, I doubt this business model could become widely popular, as taxi companies are strictly regulated and drivers are required to turn on their meters for every fare. But perhaps a few intrepid private cab operators will follow Hagen’s lead and bring “pay what you want” fares to more locations around the country.

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[via CNBC]

Family leaves child in the back of a cab

by Katie Hammel on

First some poor kid was left sleeping on a park bench when his family drove off without him in their motor home. Now another sleeping kid has gotten left behind, this time in a cab that her family had taken from the airport to their house in Boston. When they got inside, they realized the five-year old child wasn’t with them, and called the police.

The police were able to locate the cab driver, who had no idea he was carrying extra cargo. He returned the child to her parents and received a $50 tip. Then he found out he might face suspension of his license for failing to thoroughly check the backseat. The driver appealed and on Tuesday, according to the Boston Herald, police dropped the suspension with a warning for the cabbie to check his car more carefully next time.

Just another reason to make sure you keep tabs on your belongings at all times when traveling. . . especially if those “belongings” are your children.

London Black Cabs voted best in the world – Parisian cabbies the rudest

by Scott Carmichael on

A European survey of 1400 tourists has revealed where you can find the best taxi cab service.

33% of the votes went to London, followed by New York (17%) and Berlin (6%).

London cabs were also given high marks for friendliness and knowledge of the routes. They do lose marks for being exceptionally expensive.

New York came second in almost every category, except safety. In fact, New York cabbies were voted “worst drivers”, though they make up for it with their knowledge of the city.

Taxi drivers in Paris were voted the most unfriendly, and rightfully so in my opinion.

In all the times I visited Paris, I never came across a single cab driver who seemed to posses the will to live, let alone the ability to provide friendly and reliable service to the millions of tourists visiting their country. Paris also takes the top place in worst taxi availability.

Narco-tours in Mexico

by Jamie Rhein on

Yesterday Brenda wrote a post about the safety of traveling in Mexico. Here’s another travel option for Mexico if you like to flirt with danger just a tad. See if your taxi driver is a narco-tour guide. A narco-tour is when a taxi driver in places like the beach resort town Mazatlán drives you past the homes and hang outs of the famous drug cartel folks. You know, to see how people with drug money wealth live. Some of the places are of the drug big shots of days gone by since they’ve been killed. Hey, it’s not easy being a drug lord.

According to the New York Times article, there are more than one narco-tour destination. Taxi drivers in Matamoros and Culiacán have also jumped into narco-tour action. So far mostly Mexican citizens have taken these tours that the Mexican government isn’t too fond of–not because of the danger, per se, but because it puts Mexico in not the best light.

Reading about the narco-tours reminded me of the taxi driver led Anna Nicole Smith tours in the Bahamas. With a taxi, a person can come up with all sorts of ways to entertain a country’s visitors.

One of the taxi drivers interviewed for the narco-tour article sees the tours as similar to the ones you take in the United States to see sites such as Al Capone’s hangouts. Think of all the Wild West gangster types who draw tourists to places in the U.S. like the Billy the Kid Museum in Ft. Sumner, New Mexico. He has a point.