A strict dress code imposed by the council for tourism reasons does not permit cab drivers to wear casual attire like baseball caps, T-shirts or even jeans, but instead a shirt and tie.
Taxi drivers have been banned from wearing jeans, tracksuits and even trainers by a city council’s “fashion police”. Cabbies who put comfort first while driving locals and visitors around Iverness, Scotland have come under fire from the council for not following a strict dress code.
The licence agreement in the Highland Council area forbids cab drivers from wearing jeans, cords, tracksuits, T-shirts, trainers and baseball caps.
Instead, they are asked to wear a shirt, preferably with a tie, trousers and shoes, or a skirt or trousers and a blouse for female drivers.
Mark McGinty, Highland Council’s Trading Standards team leader said: “The operation of taxi and private hire vehicles is a licensable activity, and holders of licences are subject to adhering to the conditions of the licence.
“The dress code is a condition of the licence and does not include baseball caps, corduroys, denim, tracksuits, T-shirts, football strips or any other sports related shirts. Given the nature of the tourism business in the Highlands…. the council doesn’t want to see drivers dressed in this way.”
On Friday, October 31, officers carried out a series of roadside checks across the city centre and surrounding areas to ensure vehicles were roadworthy and drivers were operating in line with their licence conditions.
These roadside checks landed some cabbies in hot water. Some 27 vehicles were stopped and inspected for, among other things, dress code.
While Inverness councillor David Gregg said the operation, which also involved vehicle safety inspections, “was clearly important overall”, he questioned what harm it does to be driven around by someone in jeans.
“I can see why we’d want to prevent people wearing racist slogans on their shirts, but any time our officers spent telling people they shouldn’t wear jeans or corduroys is a waste of time.”
Inverness isn’t the only part of Scotland with a taxi dress code. In the Renfrewshire Council area, male drivers are to wear a plain shirt, plain tie, navy blue or black trousers, and black dress shoes. Female drivers are to wear a plain blouse.
Ten years ago, in 2015, taxi drivers in Moray were given a dress code and banned from smoking while they are parked at a rank.
A review that consulted the public and local organisations found that 60% favoured the introduction of a dress code for drivers to create a “smart, clean and tidy impression”.
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