Newly Formed Coalition Vows to Fight Big Tech’s Effort to Encroach on Jobs, Safety

(BOSTON) – At a hearing and rally outside of city hall, Teamsters and the Labor United Against Waymo Coalition called on the city council to pass an ordinance to hold robotaxi companies in Boston accountable. The coalition is the first mass-mobilization effort outside of California to push back against the unchecked expansion of autonomous vehicles (AVs).

“Driverless cars and trucks pose a serious threat to public safety, our communities, and the livelihoods of the countless dedicated men and women across the Commonwealth who work as professional drivers,” said Tom Mari, President of Teamsters Local 25. “These machines don’t benefit working people — they only serve the interests of out-of-state Big Tech billionaires, and their opinions shouldn’t outweigh the needs of Massachusetts residents.”

The ordinance would commission a study to investigate the impact AVs will have on the city, create an advisory board to assess those findings, and use those assessments to guide future rules for AV operators in Boston. The push for the ordinance comes amid Waymo’s efforts to map city streets and get a bill passed in the state house to allow certain vehicles to operate in Massachusetts without a human behind the wheel.

“I regularly transport patients to Boston hospitals, and if robotaxis block us, freeze in place, or don’t know how to yield, they could kill people,” said Abby O’Brien, a member of Local 25 who works as a paramedic at Armstrong Ambulance. “This isn’t theoretical, it’s what I face every day. Keep trained human operators behind the wheel because life depends on it.”

A video of the city council hearing is available here.

Teamsters Local 25 represents more than 13,000 members and their families in greater Boston and southern New England. For more information, visit teamsterslocal25.com.

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