The cabbie who shook-up the NSW taxi industry

Until his sudden death from pneumonia on Christmas eve last at Sydney's RPA Hospital, Faruque Ahmed, the 51 year old, fire-brand, taxi driver of Bangladeshi background, was widely regarded as the leading figure in the New South Wales Taxi Industry. But he was at the opposite end of the pole from Taxi Council boss, his arch rival, Reg Kermode.

Agitation amongst cabbies, through on-line web sites, pamphlets, newsletters, union rank and file meetings, talk back radio, industrial and civil courts, even Parliament House itself, were all arenas and methods employed by Ahmed Faruque over a twenty four year period, in what was regarded as a personal and unrelenting mission to see justice done for Sydney's long exploited "bailee" or non-owner taxi drivers. Sadly he did not live to see the fruits of his labour as drivers wait for the wash out from the 2010 Upper House Parliamentary Inquiry into the industry to be implemented to their advantage after the March 2011 NSW elections..

Faruque was born into a middle class family in Dacca in Bangladesh. He is survived by two brothers and two sisters there who have requested his body be returned for burial in his homeland after a service (28/12/10) for him at the Lakemba Mosque.

Faruque's initial voyage to Australia was not by design but as a political refugee. After matriculation in his homeland he faced threats to his personal safety when he became involved in militant trade union groups under Bangladesh's military influenced government in the 1970s.

He escaped to Iraq, of all places, where he worked as a labourer in the petroleum industry from 1978-82 until he was deported by Saddam's secret police for attempting to organise democratic rights for the workers . He then came to Australia and settled here quickly as a migrant.

His first jobs were in refineries at Kurnell and Silverwater . He left the industry in the mid 1980s after a dispute involving safety issues. He became a cabbie and worked first at Burgess base in Enmore Road in 1987-88.

In 1991-92 he joined the Transport Workers Union Taxi Driver's Steering Committee during a TWU recruitment phase. When it was clear that many of the other cabbies who joined the Union did not receive postal ballot papers for the election, a recall saw Faruque's Steering Committee members sweep the new election.

In the early 1990's the former Mayor of Woollahra, Hilda Rolfe was appointed as a Commissioner on the Trade Practices Commission. She was appointed by the State Government to investigate the conditions of owner-driver lorry drivers in NSW.

Against the TWU Union's wishes Faruque and other Steering Committee members put in a joint submission, and individual submissions, to this Rolfe Inquiry on behalf of bailee drivers.

Commissioner Rolfe described Faruque as a "fiery cannon" but accepted his claims and recommended to the Greiner Liberal Government that Chapter 6 of the (1991) Industrial Relations Act in NSW should be amended to include an "anti-victimization" clause to protect bailee drivers from owners imposing harsh and unfair working conditions on their employment. Under the new Act owners could be "criminally liable" for mistreatment and harassment.

With other drivers Faruque was instrumental in shifting the industrial relations landscape of the annual contract determination for the taxi industry, in one year appealing to the Full Bench of the IRC (Matter 67-87 IRC 1993) where although they lost the appeal, a redirection was ordered upon IRC Commissioner Connor in the lower court over the contract determination.

Labor Party Transport Minister Brian Langdon accepted pressure from Faruque's lobby group of cabbies over the safety for drivers issue.

A Victorian Company called Keatsdale was employed to do a report. This report recommended cameras in taxis, screens and GPS satellite tracking. When the State Government refused to release the Keatsdale Report, Faruque and another driver filed a freedom of information action against the Department of Motor Transport. Within hours, the Taxi Council, the TWU and the State Government were all appearing on the evening news declaring they would implement a new safety package for the industry.

Faruque was at the forefront of campaigns by taxi drivers, especially after they formed break away associations from the TWU. Under Secretary-Treasurer Steve Hutchens, who had a dual role as President of the ALP, the TWU was seen as too closely aligned to NSW State Labor Governments and to Reg Kermode's Taxi Council-TIA.

The various cabbie breakaway "associations" like the "Taxi Industry Service Association" and "Taxi Drivers Association" achieved success on individual issues, possibly most notably in the 2006 ACCC case against Cabcharge and the more recent "Nexus plates" scandal.

Apart from his taxi driver activism Faruque Ahmed was known throughout Sydney for his provocative stands on Middle East politics (Iraq War and Palestine) and the media coverage of Muslim and Arabic affairs. He was a regular contributor to late night radio talk back in Sydney. His depth of knowledge, accent and provocative style constantly got him into trouble with individual shock-jocks. He made constant complaints -alleging racism and religious intolerance - against many programmers. On one occasion he was arraigned in the Administrative Appeals Court with six barristers defending the Macquarie Network over allegations of racial vilification. Although he lost the case, the Network was ordered to pay their own extensive legal costs.

Above all else Faruque Ahmed was a humanitarian who has been described "as always working to help others, never in it for money. He died poor". Senator-elect Lee Rhiannon described him as "always active and doing good work".

A memorial event to commemorate his life's work will be organised by the Sydney Bangladesh community shortly.

Faruque Ahmed (Born Sylhet, Bangladesh 25/02/1959, Died, RPA Hospital Sydney 24/12/2010)