WKRN, Nashville, Tennessee News, Weather, and Sports |Allied Cab drivers put on the brakes

Allied Cab drivers put on the brakes

More than 100 taxis are off the streets in Middle Tennessee Monday after drivers turned in their Blackberries and roof-top signs.

Claiming they do not make enough, at around $2 an hour, the drivers are making a stand against the Allied Cab Company.

"We come out about 4 a.m. and we hustle," driver Abdinasir Ismael told News 2 Monday afternoon.

He started driving for the Allied Cab Company more than a year ago after he was laid off at Peterbilt in Madison.

"The economy's really bad and it's hard to find a good job," he continued.  "People think that cab drivers are less than human beings."

Allied Cab's drivers are independent contractors and the vehicles they drive belong to them.  Each week, they pay the Allied Cab Company a fee, whether they have picked up passengers or not.

With a downturn in the economy, Ismael said that fee makes driving a cab for the company unprofitable.

"We came here to be part of the American dream, but we became slaves," he said.  "It's not right."

The work stoppage by Allied Cab drivers takes about one-fifth of the taxi driving force off of Nashville's streets.

Company management did not return phone calls or requests for comment Monday afternoon.