Let go before making the union? Getting first week's pay/union initiation back.

nagboy92

Member
Where I work, historically if an employee is willing to work the job, it's theirs regardless of performance (unless they have severe attendance issues, consistently misloads 20+ packages, etc.) This year management is being more "picky" with who it's willing to retain. We've had several hires in the last six weeks dismissed because they weren't fast enough loading or unloading, had too many misloads, had a single no call, no show, etc. They weren't even tried in alternate areas. To compensate, we have multiple supervisors working every single day. So while I'm uncertain, this may be happening in greater frequency nationally.

But I am surprised it's happening in the MSP area. MSP has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, including among young adults that UPS so covets.

I was let go because I had 40 misloads in 30 days and has only able to do 180 or so PPH even though the day before I got let go I was at 220 PPH and had 0 misloads. I had help almost every day and I think some of the misloads came from them because I always made sure to check the car and shelf while walking and always wrote the HIN on the package. Like you said I was never tried in another area and was told when I was let go that if I couldn't work at 260 PPH I wouldn't be able to work here and I would become a safety hazard. I'm sure if they would have moved me to slide or unload I would have done much better but I know they wouldn't do that.
 

Loyal Teamster

Well-Known Member
I was let go because I had 40 misloads in 30 days and has only able to do 180 or so PPH even though the day before I got let go I was at 220 PPH and had 0 misloads. I had help almost every day and I think some of the misloads came from them because I always made sure to check the car and shelf while walking and always wrote the HIN on the package. Like you said I was never tried in another area and was told when I was let go that if I couldn't work at 260 PPH I wouldn't be able to work here and I would become a safety hazard. I'm sure if they would have moved me to slide or unload I would have done much better but I know they wouldn't do that.



Bro, you should have seen my threads before getting fired. This would have boosted your PPh from 220 up to about 380 overnight. As for the misloads, I mark each box with the ending truck #.(ex. 02-8052, 03-2415, 04-RDL)



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Thanks,
​Loyal Teamster
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
I was let go because I had 40 misloads in 30 days and has only able to do 180 or so PPH even though the day before I got let go I was at 220 PPH and had 0 misloads. I had help almost every day and I think some of the misloads came from them because I always made sure to check the car and shelf while walking and always wrote the HIN on the package. Like you said I was never tried in another area and was told when I was let go that if I couldn't work at 260 PPH I wouldn't be able to work here and I would become a safety hazard. I'm sure if they would have moved me to slide or unload I would have done much better but I know they wouldn't do that.

The metrics you mentioned are fairly typical of new hires here -- as well as many long-term incumbent employees -- but I believe you worked within one of UPS's newest, automated facilities so I'm uncertain as to how that would impact the job. Typically, they look for people who are capable of handling the hours / work, and show improvement over their first 30 days. It could be that you work within a high-performance sort and didn't fit in. It could be that you work in a sort struggling with its performance, and management is seeking high-achieving employees to fill the void. It could be that you rubbed somebody the wrong way, or they saw attributes of your personalty/work ethics they didn't like. It could be that you worked under the direction of some 20-year-old given total leverage who thinks that by making decisions like these, he'll being going FT tomorrow. There's just a multitude of reasons it could be.

I will tell you this: I recently turned 30, and have been working the Preload since I was 17. For my established skills, I received decent compensation from UPS through the years so I cannot complain. But it's a miserable place to work, and I know that unlike most of the PTers I work with, I have a brain and could've done better. Much better. The 3.5 hour job puts 8 hours worth of work on your body, and more than that for your resting cycle. And the people I work with ... most of the PTers wouldn't even know their own name if it wasn't broadcast on ESPN ... they'll bully and taunt other employees all..day..long, but when something's said that they don't like, they'll whine & cry to management. And if they're friends with the right people, guess who gets in trouble? (Among other privileges.) Find something you enjoy doing, go to school if you have to, just consider this to be a blessing, keep your head up & better yourself.

But I am surprised it's happening in Eagan. Delta Airline's decision to close most of the remaining former Northwest Airlines HQ & campuses must've hit the area pretty hard...
 

nagboy92

Member
It could be that you worked under the direction of some 20-year-old given total leverage who thinks that by making decisions like these, he'll being going FT tomorrow.

I had 2 supervisors during my tenure there. For the first 3-4 weeks I had a middle aged woman helping me and he was very helpful and supportive and tried to help me get faster at the job. The last week of 2 I had someone my own age (21 or so) who was tougher and basically seemed to be repeating verbatim out of some workbook and telling me I needed to work with "a sense of urgency" which I found ironic because I was moving faster and more strenuously then almost everyone else in my section. I obeyed whatever either supervisor said and made sure to never make waves with anybody in the hub and always kept a good attitude and work effort which I was told a lot of times in a "you work hard and are on time every day but you just don't cut the mustard" kind of way. I figured I was improving in the last few days and thought I would work here for a few years until I was let go. In a way I guess it's a blessing in disguise as I was told by other preloaders that it was better to get out sooner or later. To be honest I couldn't see myself working here 20-25 years like some people, it was kind of a fix between whatever came next whether it was going back to school or finding a better job.
 

bumped

Well-Known Member
That's horrible. I just joined the union last week, fortunately. I haven't been here for a long time, so I don't think I can give you a good answer. If I were you, I would get a hold of my lawyer and contact the labor department. My cousin used to be a driver at UPS and sued them for a lot of money and won. First, I would talk to the HR first, then discuss it with the FT supervisor or manager. If they don't do anything about it, contact your lawyer and department of labor. I know it was the union that deduct the money, but you still can hold UPS accountable for it. Because you didn't give UPS permission to make a third party deduct money out of YOUR hard earned money.

Who gets a lawyer for $70. Good luck finding one.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
I had 2 supervisors during my tenure there. For the first 3-4 weeks I had a middle aged woman helping me and he was very helpful and supportive and tried to help me get faster at the job. The last week of 2 I had someone my own age (21 or so) who was tougher and basically seemed to be repeating verbatim out of some workbook and telling me I needed to work with "a sense of urgency" which I found ironic because I was moving faster and more strenuously then almost everyone else in my section. I obeyed whatever either supervisor said and made sure to never make waves with anybody in the hub and always kept a good attitude and work effort which I was told a lot of times in a "you work hard and are on time every day but you just don't cut the mustard" kind of way. I figured I was improving in the last few days and thought I would work here for a few years until I was let go. In a way I guess it's a blessing in disguise as I was told by other preloaders that it was better to get out sooner or later. To be honest I couldn't see myself working here 20-25 years like some people, it was kind of a fix between whatever came next whether it was going back to school or finding a better job.

IMO, the training most employees receive sucks. I assumed you worked from a slide (as opposed to pulling boxes from a straight-belt, or boxline) and really, it's a fairly simple concept: load the packages as fast as you can into the right area on the right truck. But most people convince themselves they have to stay caught up (as in their slide is completely clear - if that happens, you'll get more work) or the job seems so overwhelming, it overpowers them mentally. The goal for success is to keep a steady, consistent pace, accurately load & don't worry about the flow. Which is easier said than done & takes some getting use to. But some supervisors, especially the ones attempting to make their name known, make the job out to be rocket science.

And FWIW, most of us who started young didn't anticipate making a career here :). I've been telling myself for 13 years that I'll finish school soon (but it's finally happening). And I can recall being in my mid-20s and 17yo, 18yo new hires taunting me for working here. Now they're in their mid-20s, have kids, and will be here much longer than me. If you really wanted the job, I suggest you contact your HR rep and/or sort manager. Sometimes if you show determination, they rescind their decision.

​Take care.
 

nagboy92

Member
I actually worked cages on a boxline. They told us 4-6 packages a time would be good and would get us done in time. The problem was they loaded the cages so heavy with all the heavy, big stuff in front and all the small stuff in back that I would go 5 minutes with cleaned cages than another 5 cages where I could only get 2-3 packages out because of the sheer size of packages and that slowed me down considerably. They also told me I spent too much time in the car, they time me once with 2 packages and it took me 15 sec to put them where they needed to be, write the HIN number, and get out which I was told was way too long to be in one car.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
I actually worked cages on a boxline. They told us 4-6 packages a time would be good and would get us done in time. The problem was they loaded the cages so heavy with all the heavy, big stuff in front and all the small stuff in back that I would go 5 minutes with cleaned cages than another 5 cages where I could only get 2-3 packages out because of the sheer size of packages and that slowed me down considerably. They also told me I spent too much time in the car, they time me once with 2 packages and it took me 15 sec to put them where they needed to be, write the HIN number, and get out which I was told was way too long to be in one car.

Boxline's are ancient, so you worked in an older facility than I had thought. We use slides here, which is the newest & most efficient method, and if you can load 250pph, you'll stay off the radar. Boxline are much slower... quite honestly, I think you rubbed somebody the wrong way.
 

nagboy92

Member
I really have no idea how I would have rubbed anyone the wrong way as I kept the my work and didn't converse much. Maybe I did somehow but I don't know.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
I really have no idea how I would have rubbed anyone the wrong way as I kept the my work and didn't converse much. Maybe I did somehow but I don't know.

Obviously I'm speculating - I don't know you or the facility you worked in. But it doesn't seem rational that within 30 days, you'd be dismissed after achieving 220pph + zero misloads on a boxline. But perhaps your facility is high-achieving, or they're seeking a high-achieving employee.

And FWIW, B.S.ing with your supervisor about the Miami Heat, Adrian Peterson, or whatever else he's into, often goes much further in menial work jobs such as UPS than working hard.
 

Loyal Teamster

Well-Known Member
I really have no idea how I would have rubbed anyone the wrong way as I kept the my work and didn't converse much. Maybe I did somehow but I don't know.

You being slow & inacurate = angry drivers- loss of money - Sup's ass on the grill.

You should have drank Jack3d = BAM power!!!

USP-16307-0.jpg
 

nagboy92

Member
I only got the 220 PPH and 0 misloads with help that day. Usually I was at 160-190 PPH with 1 or 2 misloads a day with one day getting 8 misloads. The last 2 days I worked there I only worked 3 cars and still barely got done in time so I can see why I got let go. 220 PPH was an anomaly.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
I only got the 220 PPH and 0 misloads with help that day. Usually I was at 160-190 PPH with 1 or 2 misloads a day with one day getting 8 misloads. The last 2 days I worked there I only worked 3 cars and still barely got done in time so I can see why I got let go. 220 PPH was an anomaly.

I still find it somewhat surprising, considering you were within 30 days working a boxline. I assume your supervisor felt you would not get any better. Still, if you worked my building -- in a much more depressed area of the Midwest -- you would've been kept on, provided you showed up everyday.

Like I said, consider it a blessing.
 

Loyal Teamster

Well-Known Member
I only got the 220 PPH and 0 misloads with help that day. Usually I was at 160-190 PPH with 1 or 2 misloads a day with one day getting 8 misloads. The last 2 days I worked there I only worked 3 cars and still barely got done in time so I can see why I got let go. 220 PPH was an anomaly.

It was probably for the best. If you were on my hub, would work you till you break, once broken, I would work you in small sorts till you quit.
UPS is no place for to work unless ur homeless & need crack money
 

nagboy92

Member
Yeah, my head supervisor basically said he couldn't see me getting any better because I still needed help 30 days in. Oh well, whatever my next venture I hope it works out better.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
It was probably for the best. If you were on my hub, would work you till you break, once broken, I would work you in small sorts till you quit.
UPS is no place for to work unless ur homeless & need crack money

I know you crave attention, but when it's clear that somebody's upset, do you really have to be a dick about it?
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
Yeah, my head supervisor basically said he couldn't see me getting any better because I still needed help 30 days in. Oh well, whatever my next venture I hope it works out better.

LOL, we have guys here that get help every single day. And most of them have been with the Company for many, many years. I highly recommend you return to school. Find something you enjoy doing, and make a career out of it. And when you become successful, choose FedEx. (Which is my plan!)
 

Loyal Teamster

Well-Known Member
Yeah, my head supervisor basically said he couldn't see me getting any better because I still needed help 30 days in. Oh well, whatever my next venture I hope it works out better.


Most anything is better than UPS, trust me you'll find something better. Try school or Military.


Thanks,
Loyal Teamster
 
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