Taxi app companies battle harassment issues in Pakistan

Cab drivers trained and retrained, as companies keep a close eye on ratings

LAHORE: It has been a year since global taxi-service apps started capitalising on Pakistan’s online transportation sector’s demand and have consequently grown at a much faster pace than anticipated.

Companies like Uber and Careem, however, are facing difficulties in finding educated and well-mannered captains (cab drivers), though they claim to have stringent training sessions, a strict scrutiny of the recruitment process and continuous monitoring systems.



However, the recent string of harassment issues has revealed loopholes within the standard operating procedures of these newcomers, especially when dealing with female clientele.

“It all depends on credibility, the company which provides the promised services will be preferred by us in any case,” said Uzma Khan, a student who makes use of the apps.

The way their captains behave is the most important factor, especially for females as without a sense of security they may not venture to travel with that particular service. “A slight harassment incident and the credibility of that company, no matter how huge or small it is, is at stake,” Khan added.

Harassment by the cab-drivers is a global phenomenon. In Pakistan, few cases have been reported by female clients - some also claim that the cab-drivers unnecessarily send them text massages. The companies, however, have been quick to respond.



“Respect for women is a general issue here, and it cannot be beaten by force. The only way to curb such incidents is training and retraining,” said Junaid Iqbal, Managing Director of Careem Pakistan, while talking to The Express Tribune.

Iqbal further said his company was teaching the drivers what fell under the word harassment, “we have a zero tolerance policy on this and are further tightening our policies. Nothing is more important than the safety of the customer. If a customer feels unsafe then their word is enough.”

Uber Pakistan Head of Expansion Zohair Yousaf said, “we need to qualify the word educated in the context of drivers - are they graduates? - obviously not - but are they familiar with company guidelines - for instance - how to behave with customers, making use of the app, navigate in the city, etcetera? - then they are educated.

“But for this we have to give them intense training. Aside from pre-recruitment scrutiny, as Uber is doing, we are giving anti-harassment training, teaching them how to talk with customers especially females,” he added.

The companies keep a close eye on ratings of their captains, consistent poor rating means temporarily removing the captain from rides for further training, and if the captain consistently performs poor then the companies are not hesitant to sack him.



As both companies claim they don’t own any fleet in Pakistan, they are dependent on third parties, which can be in the shape of a vendor, car-rental company or individuals - meaning they have to tackle different groups of drivers who may or may not take such training as seriously as they should.

Careem has now started penalising its vendors whenever they receive any complaint about non-professional attitude of the cab-driver. “We have started penalising our vendors on any complaint; we have security protocols and are further tightening them to make the customers feel safe.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 23^rd, 2016.

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