About 150 people rallied on the steps of the Metro Courthouse last night, to kick off a campaign to organize taxi drivers in Nashville.

They want better pay and want to change the way the city licenses cabs. Drivers currently have to pay cab companies about 175-dollars a week for the license to operate. Cab drivers say that is substantially more than the amount the companies pay Metro for the license.

Driver Khalid Worin says it would be better if cabbies could pay Metro directly, instead of having to go through the companies.

“The drivers are paying so much for the company owners, while they could pay the government the money directly and contribute to the society.”

A new social justice coalition organized the rally on behalf of the taxi drivers. Called the Nashville Movement, it’s a coalition of 4 groups including the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and the Homeless Power Project.

Organizer Catalina Nieto says the Nashville Movement plans to push for better wages and working conditions for employees in certain businesses.

“We’re starting to talk to workers and see what are the things that most concern them, and there’s a lot of workers that don’t have representation.”

The group will also be working with car wash employees in the coming weeks.