|
ALLEN TOGWELLS MARKETING PLACE |
||
| In all
the years I’ve been on the BoM and submitted articles in Call
Sign, I cannot recollect ever having encroached upon the domain
of my colleague and DaC Complaints Officer, Tom Whitbread -
until now. Neither have I ever in a capacity as Chairman of
numerous complaints meetings, had the unenviable and
exceptionally unusual task of expelling so many drivers at one
meeting as I did last month. Hence the reason for this article…
Those of you that have never sat on the panel of a DaC complaints meeting and sat in judgement of your peers will have little idea of how daunting an experience it can be. Particularly for those drivers who are experiencing the occasion for the first time and especially after being made aware of their actual responsibilities - which is not just to hear the case and cross examine, but to arrive at a judgement and set a penalty. Many might assume that part to be the responsibility of the complaints Chairman, but that is not the case. The Chairman’s role is to simply see the hearing is conducted in a proper and fair manner in accordance with Society rules and procedures, offer guidance if requested and finally to inform the complainant of the decision of the panel. Experience has shown over the years that those who have never sat on a complaints meeting before have a tendency to be extremely lenient towards the first two or three cases, although by the afternoon session they usually adopt a tougher stance. But even then there is still a reluctance to be too harsh, so a one or two weeks suspension is usual the norm unless the complainant has a history of misdemeanours which might then prompt a lengthier suspension. However, an expulsion is something of a rarity and even more rare is to have more than one expulsion at any one complaints meeting. So it was a truly unique and daunting experience last month when finding myself having to explain to no fewer than 9 drivers that they have been expelled (subject to an appeal) and to inform several more that they were on a probationary period - at the end of which time they too could find themselves automatically expelled without further discussion. So what caused this high number of expulsions and why is it likely that more could suffer the same fate? Well the answer is simply the unwillingness to play a part in meeting the Society’s obligation to give our clients an adequate service. In other words, not undertaking the required number of trips per month – currently standing at 40. There are of course genuine reasons why some drivers cannot achieve the required number of trips, such as ill health preventing them from working etc. But in the majority of instances, drivers are just not doing the minimum 40 trips per month. They are working - but prefer to take cash work off the street rather than our account work. This is totally unacceptable. We have a Sales team working |
flat out to capture new business and their endeavours are
showing remarkable results. We also have account managers working continually throughout the year trying to generate increased business from our existing clients - also successfully - so together with the new business, we are now busier than at any time in our existence. Generating new business is never easy, but it is far more difficult retaining it - particularly in the service industry because when a client gives you their total business, they expect a service when it suits them 100% of the time and NOT just when it suits our drivers. When the MD of one of our largest clients who is giving our drivers a living 365 days of the year, wants a taxi to go home after having done 12 hours in his office, he doesn’t expect excuses why a taxi cannot be supplied at the time he needs it. He’s not concerned about Arsenal playing Spurs or that the time he’s booked his cab is considered an unsociable hour or that drivers have gone home to sit with their wives and kids to watch Eastenders. Or even worse - that drivers are too busy working off the street! He wants and expects a service there and then…period! He expects the service we assured him he would get when we tendered for his company’s business. If we don’t, then we cannot complain if he decides to give his work to the other mob, the mob we all despise and who would never have existed if the cab trade had given the public a service that suited them and not just which suited us. We’ve allowed it to happen once, please don’t allow it to happen again. We’ve got the work …lets keep it. It has taken DaC over 50 years to reach where we are today. We have a fleet size unimagined by the small group of cabmen who formed this Society from the back of Bonnie Martyn’s taxi in 1953 - an impressive fleet numbering over 2200 vehicles. The regrettable downside is that we do not have all 2200 members pulling their full weight. In fact we have far too many pulling no weight at all. If this society is to be truly successful to the point where each and every member and their families can be assured of a comfortable future, then we cannot afford to carry unwanted baggage in the form of drivers who are not prepared to contribute towards that success. We have to bite the bullet. We have to say sorry, but if you are not prepared to use the expensive DaC equipment fitted in your cab to cover the account work our clients demand - which in turn assures the drivers that are prepared to cover the work a reasonable living, then we have no choice but to remove it and fit it into cabs of new drivers who will. Consequently, the Chairman, Board and Tom Whitbread in particular are doing just that. We are reluctantly biting the bullet and starting to eradicate unwanted baggage and replacing it with conscientious drivers, many of whom have responded to the |
advertisement that you may have Contacting me Allen Togwell |
 |
Powered by NetXPosure |
| Copyright 1997-2006 Dial-A-Cab Ltd, All rights reserved. |