Cast in a racial and class mode of transport: exploring the "invisible" drivers of the minibus taxi industry in South Africa.

Authors

Siyabulela Christopher Fobosi

Published in

Frontiers in sociology. Volume 11. Pages 1711861. Epub Jun 09, 2026.

Abstract

This paper analyses the precarious working lives of South African minibus taxi drivers and marshals/conductors, focusing on how their experiences intersect with broader debates on informalisation, precarity, and social justice. Drawing on Edward Webster's labour sociology and Karl Marx's analysis of veiled exploitation, the paper examines how labour within the taxi industry remains structurally invisible despite the sector's centrality to South Africa's public transport system.
The study employed a qualitative research design grounded in a social constructivist epistemology. Data were collected through 102 semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions conducted in Johannesburg (2018-2020) and East London/Mdantsane (2012-2013). Additional data sources included participant observation and documentary analysis. Thematic analysis was used to identify recurring patterns related to labour precarity, institutional exclusion, and social reproduction.
The findings reveal deeply entrenched labour precarity characterised by the absence of formal employment contracts, commission-based remuneration through the "Target" system, excessive working hours, and exclusion from labour protections such as unemployment insurance and paid leave. Government interventions, particularly the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP) and Revised Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (RTRP), have prioritised vehicle modernisation while neglecting labour formalisation and worker protections. Workers also experienced weak representation, fragmented labour relations, and deteriorating conditions affecting household and social reproduction.
The paper argues that state interventions have produced redistribution without recognition, reinforcing existing inequalities rather than transforming labour conditions. Using Nancy Fraser's three-dimensional framework of social justice, the study demonstrates how the denial of recognition and representation perpetuates exploitation within the industry. The paper concludes that meaningful reform requires structural interventions aimed at formalising labour relations, enforcing employment protections, strengthening worker representation, and ensuring decent work within South Africa's minibus taxi industry.

PMID:
42345025
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 25 Jun 2026.

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