- The Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON), the country’s e-hailing union, has threatened to go on strike to protest a directive requiring e-hailing drivers to pay a fee of ₦45,000 for airport parking.
- According to a letter sent to the Minister of Aviation regarding the matter, the said directive was reportedly issued by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
- In the letter, signed by Adedamola Adeniran, President of the Union and Alice Odibo, Acting General Secretary, AUATON also kicked against a new policy by Bolt for its drivers to wear uniforms.
The union described the “Bolt uniform wearing” as an insensitive policy by the ride-sharing platform to monopolise the car e-hailing market.
The letter emphasised the AUATON Constitution’s clarification that its members comprise self-employed workers, meaning drivers can exercise some level of control over their relationships with ride-hailing companies like Bolt, Uber, and InDrive.
This sentiment aligns with a recent position held by Bolt during the formation of the AUATON that the drivers are independent contractors, not workers or employees.
Consequently, it remains unclear how much control affected drivers have in their so-called independent relationship with Bolt.
The union requested an emergency meeting with the minister before the proposed implementation date (July 15, 2024) of the “Lagos State Airport policy”, to avoid an indefinite strike at the Lagos airport and a possible protest that would no doubt disrupt the airport's daily operations.
“We believe that there are better ways to improve and protect public security and that the decision to impose uniform wearing and additional payments on drivers is a system that favours a particular business entity (Bolt),” the union wrote.
As a solution, the union is suggesting an alternative approach designed by its Central Working Committee, proposing that the Federal Ministry of Aviation rent out car parking space at the airport to its members in exchange for a daily token.
AUATON argues that “This approach will take the control out of the hands of a particular business (Bolt), and leave the system in the hands of [the] Union’s representatives to be regulated by FAAN.”
According to Kolawole AinaIn, the Southwest Regional Chairman of AUATON, the airport authority allocated parking space to e-hailing drivers in 2022, which Bolt promptly secured.
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Until the new policy, e-hailing drivers seeking to operate around the Airport were required to undergo a biometric verification process and obtain a police character certificate to be submitted to the Directorate of Aviation Security (AVSEC).
Now, however, all that seems insufficient as the drivers are reportedly being compelled to pay another ₦45,000 and wear a Bolt-branded uniform, even though many operate across multiple e-hailing apps.
AinaIn suggests that the FAAN directs the new fee towards the companies, not the drivers.
Declining to comment on the issue, Bolt stated that the company has to comply with the new security measures and regulations as it has no control over the development.
