Unfair Production Standards

[brownmonster]

For some, the response is "My union does not recognize production standards. Further more, neither do I, nor do I believe in them. Also, neither my union or I believe in giving a fair days work. Although we did sign a contract stating we did, we purposefully made sure the definition of such is so nebulous as to be non-existent. I will therefore not work to yours nor any standard. In fact, I will go just as slowly as I feel like, and if you ask me to go faster, I will claim you are trying to make me do something that is unsafe. Even though in truth, you and I both know I could do about twice the work I am doing without getting anywhere in the realm of an unsafe pace."

Usually only the first sentence is verbalized.

I am not saying this is everyone's response, but many. There was a time I would have said you know who you are, but I have come to learn that many of the slugs really do not, in fact, realize they are slugs.

This almost appears to be a slam, or "shot fired" against the hourly employee. Agreed with by 2 mgmnt people in the "likes" area. The horror!

 

[brownIEman]

now lets trade places and i am the i e man and you are the slug.i ask you to work faster and you say??well lets say you agree.then a few days or even weeks later i tell you those numbers have changed and i need better,you know where this is going dont you?im sorry to say i will have to give you a warning letter for not following mngmt instructions,failure to use methods,dishonesty,or any number of bogus violations i can think of.and soon you will be at a panel and i will have a file on you that makes you look like the wrench stuck in the cog.now let me ask you again,,,pick it up or find employment elsewhere.

The current production standards and what we are doing with them are patently ridiculous, I was not trying to argue that. However, I believe that just going as slow as you feel like and taking no pride in your performance whatsoever is not the right answer. Just my opinion.

 

[brownIEman]

This almost appears to be a slam, or "shot fired" against the hourly employee. Agreed with by 2 mgmnt people in the "likes" area. The horror!

It is a shot against some hourly people. It is a shot against the employees who hide when they can, use the union and contract only as tools to let their brothers and sisters pick up their own slack. It is also a shot at those who, when a new employee comes in the operation or even here on this board asking for advice about improving their own efficiency and performance, they tell them, just slow down you are paid by the hour, no need to put forth any real effort, go slower - make more. Basically saying I have no desire to take any pride in my work, and you should not either.

And for those who have brought it up, I am not currently in Package, I am in an inside operation, so yes, I was thinking mostly of inside employees rather than drivers.

The vast majority of hourly employees do not fit these descriptions at all, I readily admit that. But there are far too many just in my operation that do and it is frustrating.

I suppose I should apologize to all those whose feathers I ruffled, I mean it was a totally unfair shot. After all, there has never, ever been an hourly who has taken a shot or made a slam at management on this forum, right?

 

[bigblu 2 you]

The current production standards and what we are doing with them are patently ridiculous, I was not trying to argue that. However, I believe that just going as slow as you feel like and taking no pride in your performance whatsoever is not the right answer. Just my opinion.

i agree with the pride part.i work with guys who go at it like they are fighting fire and sometimes sacrificing safety and service.those same "young guns"cover my run when i am off and i have been asked several times why i cant make those same numbers.each person and each day holds variables and circumstances that can never be gauged or measured.walk a mile in somes shoes or lift a package with another guys back and see the differences.personally i just try to work" fair",as i would want someone who was working for me to do.

 

[upserr1]

i agree with the pride part.i work with guys who go at it like they are fighting fire and sometimes sacrificing safety and service.those same "young guns"cover my run when i am off and i have been asked several times why i cant make those same numbers.each person and each day holds variables and circumstances that can never be gauged or measured.walk a mile in soles shoes or lift a package with another guys back and see the differences.personally i just try to work" fair",as i would want someone who was working for me to do.

I agree 100% but their not to compare drivers that's harassment nobody should expect someone in their fifties to do what someone in their twenties can do

 

[pretzel_man]

Using UPS time studies to measure an individual driver's performance is unfair. Its a decent tool to measure of how well management is doing at a center level.

But.....

Is it fair to measure individual drivers Ov/Un as a base? If a driver is normally .5 over, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to measure individual drivers SPORH as a base? If a driver usually runs 13.5 SPORH, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to use the above 2 measures and compare them to how well a driver performs when being ridden with? In essence using that as the standard?

If the answer to the above are all no, then I think the complaint is not against Unfair Production Standards, but against ANY production standard.

 

[bottomups]

I agree 100% but their not to compare drivers that's harassment nobody should expect someone in their fifties to do what someone in their twenties can do

Article 37.1
.....giving due consideration to the AGE and physical condition of the employee.

 

[toonertoo]

The current production standards and what we are doing with them are patently ridiculous, I was not trying to argue that. However, I believe that just going as slow as you feel like and taking no pride in your performance whatsoever is not the right answer. Just my opinion.

What if you are going as fast as you safely can and you still look like a slug on the reports. Is that fair to make people who actually used to care look like a loser employee?
The day I had yesterday I should have been a star, and I was aghast that I was 1.25 late. Not that I really give a crap anymore, I just like to go home.
I still care about my work but I know I am working at a pace, few could match, and Im still late, so Ill just use that article 37.1 thing, coZ quite frankly, over and over in my mind, I have tried to find a way to succeed in this numbers game, and I struck out. I give up, UPS you beat me. I guess you will have to find a reason to fire me.
By keeping my safe drivers awards and years of service diplomas, tucked safely away in some unused dust filled office, You think that will work? You think I dont know that you have no respect for my work ethic. go pound salt!

 

[brownedout]

Using UPS time studies to measure an individual driver's performance is unfair. Its a decent tool to measure of how well management is doing at a center level.

But.....

Is it fair to measure individual drivers Ov/Un as a base? If a driver is normally .5 over, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to measure individual drivers SPORH as a base? If a driver usually runs 13.5 SPORH, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to use the above 2 measures and compare them to how well a driver performs when being ridden with? In essence using that as the standard?

If the answer to the above are all no, then I think the complaint is not against Unfair Production Standards, but against ANY production standard.

But if your 5 day lock-in ride resulted in an unusually high SPORH, yet your over was still +1.40 and now they won't accept anything over 1.00. There is no standard.

But if you achieved this unusually high SPORH because load was groomed by their best loader, and his supervisor. There is no standard.

 

[tourists24]

Anything can be manipulated to try to get a "lock in" on a driver... Ive seen it done several ways.... everything brought up by Pretzel doesnt sound unfair; its just that the game isnt played that way in operations at the center level

 

[Dragon]

Anything can be manipulated to try to get a "lock in" on a driver... Ive seen it done several ways.... everything brought up by Pretzel doesnt sound unfair; its just that the game isnt played that way in operations at the center level

Oh yes it is.

 

[tourists24]

Oh yes it is.

Not in the way you are thinking... no its not.... IE puts out the "way it is to be done"..... Center level mgt has to make those reports look good and when they dont have to answer for it...

Operations uses any manipulation of a "fair days work" they can get to make the SPORH look good. Massaging loads...? no? loading up with stop heavy areas? no? running up miles? no? Something inaccurate?

Only speaking for my area, management likes to load up an area during a 3 day ride with as wide variety of dispatches as they can get for those 3 day (ie... no 3 days are the same), but stack it so the SPORH is as high as it can.... the route never is the same twice. Why dont they just keep it the same and get an accurate SPORH?

 

[Catatonic]

Not in the way you are thinking... no its not.... IE puts out the "way it is to be done"..... Center level mgt has to make those reports look good and when they dont have to answer for it...

Operations uses any manipulation of a "fair days work" they can get to make the SPORH look good. Massaging loads...? no? loading up with stop heavy areas? no? running up miles? no? Something inaccurate?

Only speaking for my area, management likes to load up an area during a 3 day ride with as wide variety of dispatches as they can get for those 3 day (ie... no 3 days are the same), but stack it so the SPORH is as high as it can.... the route never is the same twice. Why dont they just keep it the same and get an accurate SPORH?

Just wasting their time if they don't have a consistent load.

 

[Dragon]

Only speaking for my area, management likes to load up an area during a 3 day ride with as wide variety of dispatches as they can get for those 3 day (ie... no 3 days are the same), but stack it so the SPORH is as high as it can.... the route never is the same twice. Why dont they just keep it the same and get an accurate SPORH?

This statement is actually a good thing for the driver. You have demonstrated by using the methods and with the changing conditions on your route (which was encountered on the 3 day ride) you have shown you can maintain a demonstrated SPORH.

In my center if we are going to do a lock in ride, I always ask - is it us or them first.
We make sure we have the right work on the car - weeks before we ride.
We make sure we have the edd right - weeks before we ride.
Then using telematics and observations we attempt to correct bad behavior before we get on the car.
Then we ride.

I am not wasting my teams time with a "flash" 3 day ride. When we ride with the driver, he knows why, no gray area.
My center is by no means perfect, but when we are talking to you, you better be listening. If not you will be doing a whole lotta listening at the local level hearing.

 

[brownedout]

Since introduction of PAS almost 7 years ago I ALMOST NEVER do the same route 2 days in a row. And I've been on the same route for almost 11 years. Tuesdays and Thursdays the route is 90% similar. Mondays and Fridays, especially in the summer is anything goes. It's not that we have a big "bang out (sick)" center, it's district telling center management team 1/3 of your drivers aren't needed today. That is Logistics!

 

[Coldworld]

Using UPS time studies to measure an individual driver's performance is unfair. Its a decent tool to measure of how well management is doing at a center level.

But.....

Is it fair to measure individual drivers Ov/Un as a base? If a driver is normally .5 over, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to measure individual drivers SPORH as a base? If a driver usually runs 13.5 SPORH, then that is the standard?

Is it fair to use the above 2 measures and compare them to how well a driver performs when being ridden with? In essence using that as the standard?

If the answer to the above are all no, then I think the complaint is not against Unfair Production Standards, but against ANY production standard.

And to think most of us here had a decent amount of respect for you....what kind of management person are you; trying to state that the ups production allowances are not fair....shame on you p-man...what would your fellow managers think of you?? What would upssocks think of that statement?? Seriously though, I have NEVER heard ANYONE in management officially say that the numbers are bogus....what were you drinking(or smoking) that brought that out of you mouth?

 

[Coldworld]

Only speaking for my area, management likes to load up an area during a 3 day ride with as wide variety of dispatches as they can get for those 3 day (ie... no 3 days are the same), but stack it so the SPORH is as high as it can.... the route never is the same twice. Why dont they just keep it the same and get an accurate SPORH?

This statement is actually a good thing for the driver. You have demonstrated by using the methods and with the changing conditions on your route (which was encountered on the 3 day ride) you have shown you can maintain a demonstrated SPORH.

In my center if we are going to do a lock in ride, I always ask - is it us or them first.
We make sure we have the right work on the car - weeks before we ride.
We make sure we have the edd right - weeks before we ride.
Then using telematics and observations we attempt to correct bad behavior before we get on the car.
Then we ride.

I am not wasting my teams time with a "flash" 3 day ride. When we ride with the driver, he knows why, no gray area.
My center is by no means perfect, but when we are talking to you, you better be listening. If not you will be doing a whole lotta listening at the local level hearing.

It is ALWAYS us....ok, tell me this, are there routes in your center that are overallowed and you KNOW that those drivers are out there doing the best that they can or just have a dogs ass route...and you dont ride with them because of this. I have never seen mgt try to talk with the driver about load quality or try to put a variance in for things out of control of the driver...if something out there happens the driver ALWAYS eats the time...

 

[satellitedriver]

You think I dont know that you have no respect for my work ethic. go pound salt!

In Texas,
we say go pound sand up your .......................................

 

[bigblu 2 you]

It is ALWAYS us....ok, tell me this, are there routes in your center that are overallowed and you KNOW that those drivers are out there doing the best that they can or just have a dogs ass route...and you dont ride with them because of this. I have never seen mgt try to talk with the driver about load quality or try to put a variance in for things out of control of the driver...if something out there happens the driver ALWAYS eats the time...

YEA,my favorite words from our center manager is "you dont want me on your truck".when actually they know if they ride it will destroy some dreams and fantasies created in a fairy tale world.

 

[marvinisit]

Where can I get one of the stickers that says
Unfair
Production
Standards