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Taxi Rank and File Coalition Oral History Collection

Call Number

OH.013

Date

1972 - circa 1980, inclusive

Creator

Taxi Rank and File Coalition
Gordon, John (Role: Donor)
Saltzer, Steve (Role: Donor)
Wasserman, Paul (Role: Donor)

Extent

1 Linear Feet in 1 compact disk box and 1 audio cassette box

Language of Materials

Materials are in English.

Abstract

The Taxi Driver's Rank and File Coalition was organized on April 15, 1971 to advocate for fairer contracts and more democratic practices within the New York City Taxi Drivers Union, Local 3036. The union, led by Harry Van Arsdale, had a top-down structure, and proved unable to control the daily shape-ups that allowed company dispatchers to extort payoffs from drivers and discriminate against activists. Dissatisfaction with Van Arsdale's leadership style and the contracts that union leadership had negotiated led to electoral challenges from the Rank and File Coalition and wildcat strikes during the 1970s, with varying effectiveness. In July of 1977, the Rank and File Coalition failed to run a slate of candidates in the election and ceased publication of the rank and file paper, Hot Seat. Van Arsdale had removed himself from the union in 1973, and his successor Ben Goldberg presided over the merger of the Taxi Drivers and Allied Workers Union and the SEIU in 1978. The collection consists of thirty-six access compact disks, derived from twenty-three cassettes. Interviewees discuss working conditions, contract issues, racism, and what they perceived were the undemocratic practices of the Harry Van Arsdale leadership.

Historical/Biographical Note

The Taxi Driver's Rank and File Coalition was organized on April 15, 1971 to advocate for fairer contracts and more democratic practices within the New York City Taxi Drivers Union, Local 3036.

The Taxi Drivers Union was organized in the mid-1960s with the help of the Central Labor Council and its president Harry Van Arsdale. Van Arsdale imposed a top-down approach to union administration that many of the drivers resisted. Opposition built when the union proved unable to control the daily shape-ups that allowed company dispatchers to extort payoffs from drivers and discriminate against activists. When Van Arsdale agreed to a concessionary contract in 1971, a bitter strike ensued, and his staff was run out of a union meeting. A federal judge ordered the contract brought to a vote, and it was rejected 3 -1. Leasing was a major issue. It had been outlawed when the medallion system was established in the 1930s, but the new contract allowed it on a "voluntary" basis. After six months of conflict the owners declared an impasse and implemented the rejected contract. The union failed to respond and a wildcat strike at one garage quickly petered out. These failures and division undercut whatever strength the union had.

The taxi drivers who opposed Van Arsdale's leadership organized the Taxi Rank and File Coalition. They ran a full slate of candidates in the 1971 election and received forty-two percent of the vote. Van Arsdale won re-election, but with a plurality rather than majority. The coalition filed thirty-six counts of election-fraud with the Department of Labor.

In 1974, the Rank and File Coalition presented 2,500 signatures for the restoration of the committee elections. On May 14-15 of that year the coalition led a strike at the Dover Garage for unfair dismissals. After the dismissed were given back their jobs, the Rank and File fought the proposed fare hike of the Taxi Commission. After fighting all year for committee elections, the Rank and File received a favorable ruling in court. In June, the Rank and File won a substantial victory in the election, which was marred by irregularities; a new election was ordered.

By the July of 1977, driver interest in the Rank and File Coalition had declined. It failed to run a slate of candidates in the election and ceased publication of the rank and file paper, Hot Seat. Van Arsdale had removed himself from the union in 1973, and his successor Ben Goldberg presided over the merger of the Taxi Drivers and Allied Workers Union and the SEIU in 1978.

Arrangement

Cassettes were assigned numbers when the collection was initially indexed, and this order has been maintained.

Scope and Contents

The interviews of this collection were taken as part of an archival project organized by the Taxi Rank and File Coalition in the late 1970s and early 1980s. According to its guidelines, the purpose of the project was to compile an oral history of the New York taxi industry "as seen through the eyes of the taxi workers." Interviews were conducted by coalition members John Gordon and Paul Wasserman. The interviews were to support a never-completed book and radio program about the history of the Taxi Rank and File Coalition and experiences of drivers, including racism. Some interviews were conducted in 1976-1977 at Dover Garage, where a strike was taking place.

The collection consists of thirty-six access compact disks, and the twenty-three cassettes from which they were derived. Interviewees discuss working conditions, contract issues, and what they perceived were the undemocratic practices of the Harry Van Arsdale leadership. The collection includes group and individual interviews with rank and file activists and coalition leaders. The issues of race and intergenerational conflict are major themes. Of particular interest are group interviews entitled "Racism Sum Up" and "Black Drivers on Racism." There is a recording of a June 6, 1972 owner driver unity meeting.

Conditions Governing Access

Materails are open without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives has no information about copyright ownership for this collection and is not authorized to grant permission to publish or reproduce materials from it. Materials in this collection, which were created in 1972-circa 1980, are expected to enter the public domain in 2100.

Preferred Citation

Identification of item, date; Taxi Rank and File Coalition Oral History Collection; OH.013; box number; folder number; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Materials were donated to the library by John Gordon, Steve Saltzer, and Paul Wasserman, date unknown. The accession number related to this gift is 1978.013.

Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures

Access to audiovisual materials in this collection is available through digitized access copies. Researchers may view an item's original container, but the media themselves are not available for playback because of preservation concerns. Materials that have already been digitized are noted in the collection's finding aid and can be requested in our reading room.

Related Materials

Taxi Rank and File Coalition Records (WAG.139)

New York City Taxi Drivers Union Oral History Collection (OH.028)

The Tamiment Library also holds issues of the Taxi Rank and File Coalition's newspaper, The Hot Seat.

Collection processed by

Tamiment Staff; David Olson

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-20 16:45:04 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Description is written in: English, Latin script.

Processing Information

Cassettes were assigned numbers when the collection was initially indexed. In 2013, the entire collection was digitized and cassettes were rehoused.

Repository

Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
2nd Floor
New York, NY 10012