DG Specialist

[mjtrackman]

On Friday my manager calls me into the office and says, "Congrats you get to be a DG Specialist" hands me the book and I'm scheduled for class next week already. I'm fairly new courier (7 months) and a swing..Seems like I don't have a choice in this situation. Anybody else experience this?

 

[ProfitServiceProfit]

More responsibility, no extra pay. Every dg specialist I knew refused to requalify after they did it for a year so they always forced the new couriers to do it.

 

[jmeti000]

I could be wrong, but I always thought a dg specialist was an entirely separate position (pay grade and all), and unless its specified in your contract that you will be responsible for those extra duties, you can refuse to do it. The whole purpose of the contract stating it is because if you accept the position you are basically forewarned and willing to take on those extra duties at the specified pay...otherwise you are performing extra work without being compensated fairly for it. Am I wrong?

On a side note...if its not specified as a requirement of your position on the contract you signed, and you really don't want to do it you could always just fail out on purpose...problem solved.

 

[mjtrackman]

Hahaha, doesn't sound like a bad idea. My contract stated that I'm scheduled mon-fri as a swing but mentioned nothing about potentially being anything other than a courier. I get enough action as a swing driver daily don't need extra headaches haha

 

[MrFedEx]

On Friday my manager calls me into the office and says, "Congrats you get to be a DG Specialist" hands me the book and I'm scheduled for class next week already. I'm fairly new courier (7 months) and a swing..Seems like I don't have a choice in this situation. Anybody else experience this?

As others have said, don't do it. Lots of extra responsibility, and no extra pay. My guess is that nobody else wants to do it, so you were elected. I will also echo what others have said and state that everyone I know who was a DG Specialist eventually left the position. Nothing like getting in late, and having a huge pile of DG to check-off with a manager breathing down your neck telling you to hurry it up. Lose-lose proposition for you.

 

[HomeDelivery]

...otherwise you are performing extra work without being compensated fairly for it. Am I wrong?

On a side note...if its not specified as a requirement of your position on the contract you signed, and you really don't want to do it you could always just fail out on purpose...problem solved.

haha, yes, act like a Home Delivery driver with no common sense & they'll go look for another DG specialist

 

[STFXG]

At least as a DG specialist you'll have some extra work when express moves to a part time work force. Make yourself more valuable.

 

[Mr. 7]

I turned it down. Just like I turned down becoming an ops. mgr.

 

[Route 66]

What's this "contract" that was mentioned? ....oh, the offer letter? that piece of paper which basically says you agree to become Freddie's beeyotch and do whatever and whenever you're told?

yes, best thing to do here is fail the course. DG specialists stick their necks out on the chopping block every single day for not so much as a single additional penny in compensation. You could potentially even face personal fines and/or jail time if you screwed up badly enough (granted, I've never heard of it happening - but who needs that stress hanging over their head?), and FedEx doesn't want to shake loose with any extra bread for this added responsibility...Ridiculous! DO NOT DO IT

 

[MrFedEx]

What's this "contract" that was mentioned? ....oh, the offer letter? that piece of paper which basically says you agree to become Freddie's beeyotch and do whatever and whenever you're told?

yes, best thing to do here is fail the course. DG specialists stick their necks out on the chopping block every single day for not so much as a single additional penny in compensation. You could potentially even face personal fines and/or jail time if you screwed up badly enough (granted, I've never heard of it happening - but who needs that stress hanging over their head?), and FedEx doesn't want to shake loose with any extra bread for this added responsibility...Ridiculous! DO NOT DO IT

Sage advice. You're right about being liable for a screwed-up DG package, and we all know how Fred is behind you 100% unless he stands to lose a penny. If you eff-up, hello bus. Don't do it.

 

[hypo hanna]

What's this "contract" that was mentioned? ....oh, the offer letter? that piece of paper which basically says you agree to become Freddie's beeyotch and do whatever and whenever you're told?

yes, best thing to do here is fail the course. DG specialists stick their necks out on the chopping block every single day for not so much as a single additional penny in compensation. You could potentially even face personal fines and/or jail time if you screwed up badly enough (granted, I've never heard of it happening - but who needs that stress hanging over their head?), and FedEx doesn't want to shake loose with any extra bread for this added responsibility...Ridiculous! DO NOT DO IT

+1

lots of extra training, certifications and responsibilities and not a penny extra in your pocket. Please don't take this the wrong way, but I don't think he chose you because he saw some higher intellect. He chose you because you are a new employee who he hopes isn't yet wise to the ways of FedEx. He is looking for an easy mark.

ask yourself this, or better yet ask the SM, if its such a great position, why is it being offered to the least senior driver?

​ Go to the training. If you are lucky it will be out of town where you get a per deim and purposely flunk the course. Those meals are all you can hope to get out of being a DG specialist. If the training is local, you won't even get that.

 

[overflowed]

I have heard that your mistakes as a dg spc. you can be personally fined. That's what the dg spc. say, don't know for sure. Any DG spc? Now that I read the whole thread Rte 66 already brought this up sorry. The DG people tell me this and it pisses em off that they aren't paid extra.

 

[Myort]

DG specialist is one of the worst jobs to have. It is your primary job, but many times they like you to do far more work on top of it. Oh yeah, make sure you don't make any mistakes. Once upon a time, I was a certified DG specialist. I quietly let my recurrent training on it run out.

 

[DontThrowPackages]

On Friday my manager calls me into the office and says, "Congrats you get to be a DG Specialist" hands me the book and I'm scheduled for class next week already. I'm fairly new courier (7 months) and a swing..Seems like I don't have a choice in this situation. Anybody else experience this?

Why don't you ask around and see if any DG specialist in your station, in the past, have gotten sick. Be Aware!

 

[MrFedEx]

Why don't you ask around and see if any DG specialist in your station, in the past, have gotten sick. Be Aware!

Great point. I know one who had to go to the ER when a DG package that had been mislabeled leaked on him. Within minutes, he was unconscious and the paramedics called. Luckily, he was OK after a few hours under observation at the local hospital. What did FedEx do? Nothing, because the shipper was a huge HAZMAT customer that generated big revenue. All swept under the rug. The DG person had to call a lawyer. I don't know if it was settled or not. Long-term, how does this person know how the exposure will affect them? They don't.

In another case, a DG person worked with a large number of Radioactive packages night after night for years. A few years ago, they developed a rare form of cancer associated with exposure to radioactivity and DIED. What did FedEx do? NOTHING.

 

[hypo hanna]

At least as a DG specialist you'll have some extra work when express moves to a part time work force. Make yourself more valuable.

yes
, people who work for free are valuable to a corporation.

 

[STFXG]

yes
, people who work for free are valuable to a corporation.

Do DG specialists not get paid hourly for doing the job?

 

[HomeDelivery]

Do DG specialists not get paid hourly for doing the job?

yes, but who would want all that responsibility/risk if it's the SAME RATE as a regular express courier?

Ground handles HazMats as well, but they don't get any additional rates for transporting them, right?

 

[CJinx]

yes, but who would want all that responsibility/risk if it's the SAME RATE as a regular express courier?

Just something to add to the resume, I guess. I am hazmat certified, which requires refresher training every few months as well as certification renewal yearly. No extra pay, just an extra hat to wear(and smock, gloves, face mask, etc).

 

[Cactus]

I'd purposely flunk the class. It wasn't the OP's choice to begin with. And if the managers are so smart, why don't they do it?