Does Robert Abela’s Policy Mean Cab Rides And Food Delivery Will Become More Expensive?
After pledging to embark on a process to weed out “unessential” jobs, Robert Abela finally offered some clarity as to which workers will be impacted.
Unsurprisingly, cab drivers and food delivery couriers are the first on the chopping block.
“The country has enough Y plate drivers and food couriers and doesn’t need more,” he said. “To all those who said ‘but we invested and what not’, I tell them that the country has reached the maximum limit and doesn’t need any more workers. They can use the current workers.”
This announcement will certainly go down well with many people, but the Prime Minister owes it to the nation to explain the full implications of this new policy.
The reason there are so many cab drivers and food couriers is because there is a massive demand for their services. Cab platforms have allowed people to easily and effectively get from A to B at relatively cheap prices without worrying about parking or waiting too long.
While people who had purchased cars with the intention of earning a living as full-time cab drivers felt the strain of increased competition driving down prices, consumers did benefit in terms of cheaper rides.
There are serious concerns of a lack of enforcement on parking rules but that is a government problem.
Food couriers offer an extremely convenient service too. Since the Covid pandemic, people have grown used to being able to order meals and groceries at the click of a button, saving them time from driving and cooking.
Now the Prime Minister has decided that the country has enough of these workers and won’t be accepting anymore. He didn’t clarify whether the acceptable number of workers has been frozen at the current number. In other words, if 100 Y plate drivers and food couriers were to leave Malta tomorrow, will 100 job positions open up or will the market just shrink?
If the market shrinks, it stands to reason that consumers will probably have to get used to higher prices.
If cab drivers and couriers are competing against fewer people, they will be able to jack up their prices. It’s good news for them obviously, but consumers will unfortunately draw the short end of the stick – forced to pay more for cab rides and food delivery over and above everything else that has become much more expensive in recent years.
Robert Abela is currently portraying this policy as a silver bullet solution but he owes it to the people of Malta to explain how it could impact their everyday lives.
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