Is new taxi service for women illegal?
Image from Shutterstock.
A livery car service that aims to connect female customers with taxis driven by women in pink pashmina scarves has delayed its New York launch until it can line up more drivers.
Customers who want a driver from SheTaxis will use an app to call for a car, report the New York Times and Reuters. The company was founded by Stella Mateo, who says it will serve women who want female drivers because of safety or religious reasons.
The drivers will be independent contractors, Mateo has said. (The company will be called SheRides in New York City because of regulations on the use of “taxi” in names.)
Some are questioning whether the service is legal. New York City officials say the company’s drivers can’t refuse to pick up men, and they are advising the company about New York City human rights law, according to the Times. A company spokeswoman, Tamika Mallory, said Monday that men would not be excluded from using the service. She told the Wall Street Journal Law Blog last week that men would be referred to another car service.
New York State human rights law bars unfavorable treatment of workers and job applicants based on sex, and also ban places of public accommodation from discriminating against customers based on sex, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog says. The state law applies to companies with more than three employees. Title VII’s ban on discrimination applies to companies with 15 or more employees.
New York University law professor Samuel Estreicher told the Law Blog he sees problems with the concept. “Generally, the law doesn’t recognize the customer preference as a justification for discrimination,” he said.
Andrew Celli is a lawyer for the company. “We have no legal issues as far as I’m concerned,” he told Reuters.
