On February 26, 2021, Kelowna Cabs locked out its unionized taxi dispatchers and call takers. The workers are part of the union, MoveUP.

These workers have been without a collective agreement since the previous one expired in May 2019. Kelowna Cabs is trying to outsource local dispatcher work to a call centre overseas and have previously threatened to replace all its unionized workers with an app.

To try and get their way, Kelowna Cabs has taken the extreme tactic of locking out their workers in the middle of a pandemic. The union has been fighting to get Kelowna Cabs to rescind their lockout so the workers can get back to their jobs, and for the employer to return to the bargaining table in good faith to negotiate a fair collective agreement that does not jeopardize and, ultimately, eliminate local jobs from Kelowna.

Outsourcing these local dispatching jobs to an overseas call centres would not only mean the eventual elimination of these local jobs, but would mean also a less accurate, less personal, and less user-friendly service being provided both for customers as well as for the taxi drivers who rely on communicating with dispatchers who know and understanding the surroundings.

By signing this petition, you are calling on Kelowna Cabs to:

1. Rescind the lockout of its unionized employees so they can go back to work; and

2. Return to the bargaining table in good faith and commit to protecting local jobs by withdrawing the demand to outsource work to an overseas call centre.