Taxi Driver Grateful to His Employer
It’s high time that Fijians think of ways to help each other through the COVID-19 crisis, says taxi business owner Shaneel Chandra. As the taxi business continue to face the full brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Chandra had this week, told his driver, Sandeep Lal, that he was deducting his weekly payable income by $80 from what he had initially paid before the pandemic.
Mr Lal said he was blessed to be able to pay lesser as he was struggling to make ends meet with his daily income.
“Before the pandemic, I would be getting close to $70 per day from the taxi business but now I am only getting $30 a day,” he said.
“This job is my bread and butter, and I was struggling financially to collect my weekly income and put food on the table too.
“That is why I approached the taxi owner, Mr Chandra, to consider dropping the weekly deduction I pay him from $280 to $200.
“He hesitated, but then he gave it a good thought and then told me just last Monday that he has decided to give me an $80 discount.”
Mr Lal said he was grateful that even though his boss was struggling to pay off his car loan, he still considered his request.
Mr Chandra said: “It was not an easy decision for me to make reducing the income due from my driver, but it’s time that we be considerate. I have base fees, maintenance fees and other payments to look after, but I have still decided to help Sandeep out too.
“He has a family to feed and has his own commitments, it is important that we look into the needs of everyone as we continue to fight through the impacts of COVID-19.”