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Guide to the New York Taxi Workers Alliance Records WAG.319
Descriptive Summary
| Creator:
|
New York Taxi Workers Alliance |
| Source:
|
New York Taxi Workers Alliance |
| Title: |
New York Taxi Workers Alliance Records |
| Dates [inclusive]: |
1972-2011 |
| Dates [bulk]: |
1997-2010 |
| Abstract: |
The New York Taxi Workers' Alliance was founded in 1998 by members of the Lease Drivers
Coalition (LDC), an advocacy project of the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence
(CAAAV). The union, led by Executive Director Bhairavi Desai since its inception,
fights for structural change in the taxi driving industry, regularly ranked by the
Department of Labor as one of the most dangerous job in the country. The NYTWA supports
drivers through legal advocacy, health benefits, and numerous campaigns fighting for
safety and economic justice for taxi workers. Because taxi drivers are considered
independent contractors, they cannot engage in collective bargaining. Despite this
impediment, the NYTWA claims it has increased taxi drivers' incomes by 35%-45%, including
implementation of the first-ever Living Wage standard for US taxi drivers in 2004.
The records of the New York Taxi Workers' Alliance document the organization from
its growth out of the Lease Driver Coalition (an initiative of the Committee Against
Anti-Asian Violence) in 1998 to its 2012 status as a national union and a member of
the AFL-CIO in 2010. The records illusrtate the growth of the union in membership,
funding, and media coverage, and the specific challenges of 21st century labor organizing
in a transient and ethnically diverse population. The collection primarily documents
the two major activities of the union: campaigns and legal services.
|
| Quantity: |
13 Linear Feet in 12 record cartons, 1 manuscript box and 1 oversized flat box |
| Quantity: |
2 websites in 2 archived websites. |
| Language: |
Materials are primarily in English. Some materials in the collection have been translated
into Spanish, Urdu, and other Indo-European languages.
|
| Call Phrase: |
WAG.319 |
| Sponsor: |
Processing and description work on this collection was made possible in part by a
grant from the Documentary Heritage Program of the New York State Archives, a program
of the State Education Department.
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