Since August of this year Ottawa taxi drivers at the airport have been locked out by their employer Conventry Connections. The main issue is a 400 percent fee increase demanded by Conventry Connections and the Ottawa Airport Authority (OAA). Both want new levies amounting to $4.50 per taxi customer. For drivers this means a cost of roughly $1300/month, up from the $380/month that was charged previously.
When cabbies refused, Conventry locked out its airport drivers (organized by UNIFOR Local 1688), and began conducting business with strikebreaking cabs. That led to tense situations as cabbies struggle to maintain very modest incomes. RankandFile.ca has been following this story, publishing numerous pieces, since the lockout began. Below are interviews with one of the taxi drivers, Adnan Ghadie, and a spouse of one of the locked out workers, Waffa Dwaydar.