Despite the fact that the coverage is required, many companies have not been complying with that rule.
According to the New York Workers’ Compensation Board, the law in the state says that taxi driver disability insurance coverage must be provided to fleets for employees who suffer injuries while off duty, or illnesses.
However, many of the fleets in the state have failed to provide their workers with that coverage.
The lack of taxi driver disability insurance has meant that when employees of these companies suffer from medical issues that are not related to their work, then they need to provide for their own needs. This has meant that there is, quite frequently, no safety net in place for the workers who are on the job for most of the week and for several years, but who then develop a serious illness or who are injured while they are not behind the wheel.
This means that while the worker is off duty, if he or she becomes ill or is injured, then they are not covered. This, despite the fact that the New York Workers’ Compensation Board has said that it is a required coverage for the fleets. State officials have reiterated that, by law, these companies must provide the coverage to their workers. However the employees of many companies are offered only workers’ compensation protection, limiting the coverage to on the job situations.
The reason that the off the job coverage is required is that it will provide for individuals who are working hard for these companies that bring in millions of dollars in profits, in case they are injured or ill. It will stop those employees from losing everything just because they are incapable of working during a period in which they are sick or hurt.
The primary struggle being faced with the issue of taxi driver disability insurance is that while the law has been in place, there has not been a great deal of enforcement, as of yet. The issue has now been placed in the spotlight, so the state, and its cabbies, are now watching to see the direction that it will be taking.