WOMEN TAXI DRIVERS

Timaru Herald, Volume CLIII, Issue 22535, 20 March 1943, Page 4

WOMEN TAXI DRIVERS

Hours Of Work In Cities Daylight Employment Recommender! At the meeting of the Timaru Borough Council on Monday evening the Works Committee will recommend to the Council that women taxi drivers in Timaru be permitted to operate between the hours of sunrise and sunset only. The recommendation is the result of information received by the Town Clerk (Mr E. A. Killick), who wrote to the secretary of the Municipal Association as follows: “As regards the question of women drivers, the Borough Council issues a driver’s licence, but there its function appears to end. Questions have been raised as to whether women taxi drivers should have to drive soldiers to hotels late at night. This would appear to me to be rather a matter for the Police or the Labour Department to deal with. I think the question has probably arisen from the situation in Invercargill—a no licence town—where taxis driven by women have been taking soldiers to a hotel outside the borough. I doubt if we have power to deal with this matter by by-law.” "I have not yet received a reply,’’ Mr Killick reported, "but I have received replies from Town Clerks of the four centres as follows: "Auckland: The Council, after lengthy consideration, resolved that where there is a favourable report from the police, taxi-cab drivers’ licences oe issued to women applicants on the same conditions as issued to males.” "Wellington: Women taxi-drivers are licensed by the Wellington City Council under the same conditions as apply to men taxi-drivers except that they are permitted to operate between the hours of sunrise and sunset only.”

No Special Conditions

"Christchurch: No conditions have been imposed by my Council in respect of such licences. However, two of the principal taxi-cab proprietors do not work their women drivers after 7 p.m., although one has intimated that should the manpower position become more difficult it may be necessary for them to work a little later. One firm, however, employs four women drivers, some of whom are required to work until 3.15 a.m. This firm does not ply for hire on the streets, all of their work being private hire. Although the question of limiting the hours in which women taxi drivers could be employed was considered, I did not think it necessary to make any recommendation to the Council in view of the fact that very few of the women employed in Christchurch are required to worK late hours. Furthermore, I am not sure that there is any authority for the placing of restrictions on taxi-cab drivers’ licences.”

"Dunedin: Licences to drive taxicabs have been issued to women on the following conditions: (a) Women employees to be employed on night shift on selected work only; (b) transport to be provided for women employees at the completion of their night shift work; (c) the permission granted to be considered a war measure only, and during the pleasure of the Council. “The matter came before the Council as the result of a notice of motion submitted by the Mayor, that women should not be employed on night shift after 11 o’clock. The Council has decided that no alteration be made. During the discussion of the matter in Council doubt was expressed as to the Council’s legal power to impose any restrictions an the employment of women, and a perusal of the Act lends some weight to this opinion.”