and speculated what value the cooperative would garner from paying Kern an hourly wage just so the two of us could sit at the airport, but my trainer had altruism on his mind.
"Slow time," Kern said. "Let's head back uptown. I'm not much of a trainer if I let us just sit here and shoot the shit for an hour waiting to load."
We left the airport and ran about a half-dozen calls before Kern announced that our training session was complete. His announcement felt abrupt. Had he decided my training was adequate? Or had he felt that no amount of training could make up for a total lack of geographic knowledge? As we drove back to the office, I glanced furtively at his face, trying to read an expression that was totally enigmatic.
Kern showed me how to refuel the cab and take the ending readings. We parked the vehicle and gathered up all our belongings, then returned the cab key to the dispatcher, who, in turn, removed the calls slips from the appropriate hook on the large peg-board next to him, stapled the stack together and handed it to Kern.
Kern sat me down in front of an electronic adding machine and walked me through the process of balancing a waybill at shift's end. He counted his money and handed me a five-dollar note - my share of the tips. After we completed the paperwork, he seemed impressed, then plucked an evaluation form from his rucksack and began filling it out, explaining each point as I watched.
"Driving, I'll give you a five." Categories were each judged on a numeric scale from one to five, five being the best. "Radio skills, another five. You were shaky at first, but got it down pretty good. Paperwork, a definite five, but when you're anally retentive, paperwork comes pretty easy. Customer relations, another five. ThatOld World charm should work pretty well, especially with the women." He winked at me.
The last category was "knowledge of the city." I held my breath as Kern wrote a two on the form. At the bottom, a line read, "should this trainee be hired?" Kern paused, tapping his pen back and forth between the box that said "yes" and the one that said "no."
"Your knowledge of the city is not good, not good at all, and I am very concerned about that, Al. Now, there is something you have to understand. Just because the Hiring Committee decided to hire you, that doesn't guarantee you've got a job here. All new drivers are on probation when they start. They have to pass probation before they become members of the cooperative. As of right now, you don't have any of the rights a member has. You could get fired tomorrow and have no right to appeal."
I held my peace, held my breath, waiting for Kern to complete what the Americans would call his pregnant pause.
"Also, I want you to know, as a trainer, I can recommend that we not hire somebody. Management is free to ignore me if they want, but the few times I've said, 'don't hire this person,' theyhave listened to me."
Another pregnant pause. What was Kern implying? I wished he would just say whatever it was he wanted to say. How typical of these commoners. They crave power, and when they finally get it, all they can think of is how to use it against their betters.
"With seasoning, I see absolutely no reason why you can't eventually become one hell of a cabbie. You're smart, you do everything else well. Your knowledge of the city will come in time. I am therefore recommending that we hire you. And, considering that you've mastered everything else, and that you're simply going to have to get to know the city on your own, I'm concluding your training, as of now."
"That is wonderful!" I grabbed Kern's hand and shook it vigorously. "When may I start?"
"You'll have to talk to Kevin about a schedule. Give him a call tomorrow. He'll set you up. Just remember, take it slow. No one's gonna expect too much from you right away. As long as you don't crack up any cabs."
"I will remember that."
"Also remember, wewill be watching you, Al. Granted, I'm telling you to take it slow. I'm telling you we never expect too much from rookies right at the beginning, but do not forget, you are on probation, which means you can be terminated at any time. It also means that if you're not cutting the