The Bahamas Taxi Cab Union has ended its participation in discussions with government officials over its dispute with livery drivers. Taxi drivers contend that livery drivers have no right to work at the Lynden Pindling International Airport and that their presence is taking money away from taxi drivers.

Bahamas National Alliance Trade Union Congress President Belinda Wilson recently commented on the situation while speaking with reporters. She advised taxi drivers to return to the negotiating table.

Wilson said, “livery has been around for about twenty years or more, taxi has been around forever. But both entities, none of them are going away. So we have to find a way that’s a win-win situation where both employees in both of those sectors are able to earn money, able to represent our country to the tourists that enter and see them first and to be able to feed their families.”

Wilson said both the livery and taxi cab unions met with officials of the Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD), the Road Traffic Department and the Airport Authority where the livery union presented a proposal for peaceful operations.

According to Wilson a steering committee comprised of representatives from both the taxi cab and livery unions was formed to plan the way forward. She said, “we spoke about having color codes. We spoke about having a desk so that when the guest come they would know whether they are going outside to taxi or they’re stopping to the desk to livery. We were able to speak about persons being uniformed so that you would be able to be identified. We asked NAD to put an additional greeter on the door, which they did. We asked Road Traffic to also go ahead and give us a road traffic officer that is experienced, they did that. So we thought that we were well on the way but taxi union they pulled out and say they will not be meeting with livery anymore.”