I'm a loooong time lurker and decided to sign up finally. I like what you've done with the place, very nice. Anyway. I am a contractor for Ground and Home Delivery (more than 6 trucks, less than 10) somewhere in the middle of the country. Pardon me for being vague, but... who knows who reads what....and I guess I'm a paranoid weirdo.
I see over and over here and elsewhere that G/HD contractors are somehow getting away with subcontracting their employee drivers, or worse yet paying them per stop? Fer real? Why how what? I don't get why those drivers don't do something....? If the stories I read here are true...like, 14 hour days every day while being paid what works out to minimum wage -maybe? The contract specifically PROHIBITS that. That means termination for the contractor. So...WTF?
My drivers make $15-$20/hr. That sounds significantly higher than what G/HD contractors drivers report here...and I live in an area where you can live off of $10/hr (but it would suck). My G guys are out until 5:30-6 if it is their day to cover late pickups, and HD guys are generally done by 4 and come in to load (if they are HD) around 7...or leave the station between 8-8:45 if they are G. So again, my question is...WTF is with these contractors, and WTF is with drivers ACCEPTING that?? Or are these guys hiring drivers that are really only worth paying $80/day? Why?
There are weeks *I* don't get paid (from myself) to ensure those guys are covered. They have workers comp, paid time off, bonuses and a health insurance allowance.
All that said...I loathe FedEx Ground as a company. I also do think the degree of evil varies from location to location, even region to region...once upon a time, our station was a good place to work. But now, nah,not so much. They micromanage "my" employee drivers, dictate every possible aspect of operating "my company", and looooooove to use threats, intimidation, and retaliation to beat you into submission.
And for the record, none of my drivers have neck tattoos, none are child molesters, all take regular piss tests and all my trucks are in PERFECTO, beautiful condition, they have to look 'fresh from the showroom', or X will not let us use them and force us into rentals. One of my G guys is an award-winning step van driver. We actually get along pretty well with our Brown route-pals, too. So take THAT, preconceived notions that all Ground contractors own rolling trailer parks!
But...yeah. I'm looking forward to some interesting discussions.
I see over and over here and elsewhere that G/HD contractors are somehow getting away with subcontracting their employee drivers, or worse yet paying them per stop? Fer real? Why how what? I don't get why those drivers don't do something....? If the stories I read here are true...like, 14 hour days every day while being paid what works out to minimum wage -maybe? The contract specifically PROHIBITS that. That means termination for the contractor. So...WTF?
My drivers make $15-$20/hr. That sounds significantly higher than what G/HD contractors drivers report here...and I live in an area where you can live off of $10/hr (but it would suck). My G guys are out until 5:30-6 if it is their day to cover late pickups, and HD guys are generally done by 4 and come in to load (if they are HD) around 7...or leave the station between 8-8:45 if they are G. So again, my question is...WTF is with these contractors, and WTF is with drivers ACCEPTING that?? Or are these guys hiring drivers that are really only worth paying $80/day? Why?
There are weeks *I* don't get paid (from myself) to ensure those guys are covered. They have workers comp, paid time off, bonuses and a health insurance allowance.
All that said...I loathe FedEx Ground as a company. I also do think the degree of evil varies from location to location, even region to region...once upon a time, our station was a good place to work. But now, nah,not so much. They micromanage "my" employee drivers, dictate every possible aspect of operating "my company", and looooooove to use threats, intimidation, and retaliation to beat you into submission.
And for the record, none of my drivers have neck tattoos, none are child molesters, all take regular piss tests and all my trucks are in PERFECTO, beautiful condition, they have to look 'fresh from the showroom', or X will not let us use them and force us into rentals. One of my G guys is an award-winning step van driver. We actually get along pretty well with our Brown route-pals, too. So take THAT, preconceived notions that all Ground contractors own rolling trailer parks!
But...yeah. I'm looking forward to some interesting discussions.