Amid circulating social media speculation of an imminent taxi fare protest set to launch Monday morning, the top leader of Jamaica’s St James Taxi Association has pushed back against the claims, labeling the viral announcement as premature and uncoordinated.
Dion Chance, president of the local association, told local media outlet Observer Online that the unapproved strike notice originated from an individual based in the southern parish of St Elizabeth, not from authorized industry leadership in St James. As of Sunday, the Jamaica Constabulary Force had issued an internal advisory to its personnel alerting them to potential disruptions tied to the rumored strike, which was framed as a push for increased taxi fares.
Contrary to the viral warning, public transit operations across St James continued to run normally on Monday with no work stoppages reported. Chance emphasized that organized industry action does not happen spontaneously. Any official strike would require advance notification to all association members, exhaustive exploration of all negotiation channels with relevant stakeholders, and deliberate planning to ensure any protest is effective. “Our members know full well that they would receive formal, advance communication before any industrial action. We do not just call a strike overnight,” he explained.
Chance confirmed that industry leaders are already in the process of addressing fare increase demands, with a scheduled meeting of all taxi association presidents from across Jamaica set for Thursday this week. This gathering follows an initial meeting held last week to discuss the issue. Following Thursday’s discussions, leadership will finalize a formal plan of action based on the meeting’s outcomes, Chance added.