A Taichung bus driver who verbally abused and refused service to migrant workers, allegedly for wearing too much cologne, received a serious demerit and his company was fined by the city government on Saturday.
A YouTube video uploaded on Friday showed the driver, surnamed Chao (趙), getting off his route 97 Southeast Bus to smell three migrant workers waiting at the Youshi-You Ninth Intersection bus stop at Yu Shi Industrial Park before only letting two of them on the bus.
He refused to let one of the workers on the bus and gestured for him to leave, the footage showed.
At another bus stop, the driver did not smell Taiwanese-looking passengers, the video showed.
Toward the end of the video, the driver is seen screaming at another migrant worker to get off the bus for wearing too much cologne.
Huang Yu-yao (黃淯耀), manager of Southeast Bus, said that after being notified of the matter by a migrant worker broker agency, the matter was investigated.
The driver said that he was allergic to fragrances and had an allergic reaction on his skin, but he still received a serious demerit because verbal abuse and refusing someone transportation are not tolerated, Huang said.
Chao had only been on the job for about two months, mainly driving the route between National Yuanli Senior High School and Taichung Airport via Yu Shi Industrial Park, Huang said, adding he should have notified the bus company if he had any allergies.
Chao is still driving the same route, but has been asked by the company to keep his mask on at all times and to open the driver’s side window for fresh air, he added.
If he continues to have an allergic reaction, he would be asked if he wants to change to another route, Huang said.
Chen Wen-cheng (陳文政), deputy chief of the city’s Public Transportation and Rapid Transit System Office, said that Southeast Bus has been fined NT$5,000 because of the driver’s refusal to allow a passenger onto the bus.
Security cameras installed on the bus would also be reviewed to look for any related contraventions, he added.
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