What is a "Bonus Center"?

[dilligaf]

least best?

Oooooh Ya! Before I got my route there was one route that I could beat nearly every single time, even taking lunches and breaks. Not mine though, the numbers are so bad on it, the only way to beat it is to not take lunch and breaks and then that's iffy.

 

[Overpaid Union Thug]

With all of the technology UPS is using to monitor us bonus is a dangerous thing. In my center the drivers that used to regularly get allot of bonus had to run, exceed the speed limit, NI1 all apartments instead of dropping them at the office, sign for customers, pad their miles, etc., etc.. Now they still do those things but get little or no bonus. These are the drivers that complain about UPS "stealing their time (time allowances)" from them. I feel like saying "Yeah, and it's your own fault you idiots!".

 

[Coldworld]

With all of the technology UPS is using to monitor us bonus is a dangerous thing. In my center the drivers that used to regularly get allot of bonus had to run, exceed the speed limit, NI1 all apartments instead of dropping them at the office, sign for customers, pad their miles, etc., etc.. Now they still do those things but get little or no bonus. These are the drivers that complain about UPS "stealing their time (time allowances)" from them. I feel like saying "Yeah, and it's your own fault you idiots!".

yep its the biggest scam..im surprised nobody has tried to take them to court over it. I have an industrial route and these type of runs have lost the most time over the years. use to scratch the route...and i bet i have lost over two hours over the last few years from a stupid keyfob(where many of my stops i walk around and open the back door up..bulk stops) where edd is concerned I NEVER sorted the truck out but lost time for it....ummm real fair and the loads have actually gotten worse..more pal label flips, more misloads...it use to bug me...not anymore

 

[browned_out]

The first part of the equation is a good time study, 2nd-decent preloader, 3rd-area knowledge (this includes gate codes, keys for apartment bldgs/mgr accepting pkgs for tenants), 4th-miles driven, 5th-pick up pieces (the more the better, same with miles driven) 6th-cod's (again the more the better only you have to have your customers trained to have them ready or they can write them up quickly) 7th-delivery stops.

 

[brownmonster]

Since the day I started driving, my goal has been to finish my day and get home as early as possible whilst not killing myself. If the company wants to pay me for another hour and a half after I left who am I to argue?

 

[frivolous petty small.]

If you can beat the candy land numbers they reward you for it. If they say it's a 10 hr day and you come in at 8.5, you'll get 8 hours at straight time, .5 hours of ot plus a bonus of 1.0 hr at OT becuse they dispatched it into OT hours. Bonuses are going the way of the dodo though. UPS just raises your stop count to counter the bonusers in hopes of you continuing to haul arse to bonus or running scratch. It's a win-win for someone and I'll give you 10 guesses as to whom and the first 9 don't count.

Is it the company who wins?

 

[Coldworld]

The first part of the equation is a good time study, 2nd-decent preloader, 3rd-area knowledge (this includes gate codes, keys for apartment bldgs/mgr accepting pkgs for tenants), 4th-miles driven, 5th-pick up pieces (the more the better, same with miles driven) 6th-cod's (again the more the better only you have to have your customers trained to have them ready or they can write them up quickly) 7th-delivery stops.

I can touch 900-1000 a day and Im not close to scratch...pieces use to matter, not anymore. These business routes are where ups makes a large chunk of their money, and they have cut back on the allowances on these types of routes.

 

['Lord Brown's bidding']

Pieces still matter....The most important stat, however, is your stops (delivery + pickup). Once you learn what your stop count should be for the route based on the center's planned day (deliveries as well as pickups), along with your route's expected mileage, you'll begin to get a basic idea of what a scratch day should look like, and may begin to see how you may approach it....or if the route really sucks.

One doesn't have to break their necks or kill others in car crashes to try and get bonus, and cheating may be just as rampant in non-bonus centers as well; it has a higher profile in bonus centers because of the economic reward that may come with it (I've worked in a bonus and a non-bonus center). If a driver is proficient in their delivery methods they should have a good SPORH; if one day they have so many airs they must do a straight air run, thus racking up extra miles as well as stops, they may get bonus that day. Same thing if they have a typical day, but one day the widget factory sends out 150 more widgets than normal, affecting their piece count similarly; they may get bonus that day. Find out what your center's planned day is, find out the target SPORH for your route, and find your route's expected mileage. Then you will know what's expected of you, and realize when bonus may be coming.

Word of advice: don't "seek" bonus: run the route the way it is supposed to, keep your SPORH up. Don't try to cheat the system, because they will find out. Do a fair day's work for a fair day's pay and bonus may find you.

 

[Jackburton]

Re: definition

Actually, it pays at overtime rate. I know. I am in a bonus center. Love it!

Actually it varies by center. In our center it's straight time, in another center (located in the same building) they aren't on a bonus structure.

 

[Overpaid Union Thug]

The more bonus a driver gets the more time the bean counters and UPS's technology will take from them. Count in it.

 

[browned_out]

I can touch 900-1000 a day and Im not close to scratch...pieces use to matter, not anymore. These business routes are where ups makes a large chunk of their money, and they have cut back on the allowances on these types of routes.

You just made my point, (first part of the equation-good time study). I assume your piece count is delivery/pick up, what can happen if your pick up pieces are high (1 or 2 stops give you alot of smalls) is they will change your allowance to reflect that. I had a stop that gave me alot of 2day paks, sometimes 300/400 per day in bags. Easy pick up maybe 10 min total, took credit for everything, made nice bonus for a while until center manager came out to see the customer. Next day was told that I couldn't take full credit, if I picked up 10 bags for example I could only get credit for 10 pieces????? This is how I have seen them wittle bonus routes down.


I am now in a different center, back to utility but can still break most routes by 15/30 mins. I am not a runner, I take lunchs and breaks. I believe methods and sporh are what get you bonus (not much but some). Any route that pays a large bonus either has a very generous time study or they pick up easy pieces like I stated above.

 

[Coldworld]

You just made my point, (first part of the equation-good time study). I assume your piece count is delivery/pick up, what can happen if your pick up pieces are high (1 or 2 stops give you alot of smalls) is they will change your allowance to reflect that. I had a stop that gave me alot of 2day paks, sometimes 300/400 per day in bags. Easy pick up maybe 10 min total, took credit for everything, made nice bonus for a while until center manager came out to see the customer. Next day was told that I couldn't take full credit, if I picked up 10 bags for example I could only get credit for 10 pieces????? This is how I have seen them wittle bonus routes down.


I am now in a different center, back to utility but can still break most routes by 15/30 mins. I am not a runner, I take lunchs and breaks. I believe methods and sporh are what get you bonus (not much but some). Any route that pays a large bonus either has a very generous time study or they pick up easy pieces like I stated above.

I can guarantee if you had a pickup there you were picking up 300 50 pounders they wouldn't give you more time..which they should since a 50# box is heavier than the "average" UPS box....but they can take a few minutes away for some smalls....total bs

 

[kingOFchester]

You just made my point, (first part of the equation-good time study). I assume your piece count is delivery/pick up, what can happen if your pick up pieces are high (1 or 2 stops give you alot of smalls) is they will change your allowance to reflect that. I had a stop that gave me alot of 2day paks, sometimes 300/400 per day in bags. Easy pick up maybe 10 min total, took credit for everything, made nice bonus for a while until center manager came out to see the customer. Next day was told that I couldn't take full credit, if I picked up 10 bags for example I could only get credit for 10 pieces????? This is how I have seen them wittle bonus routes down.


I am now in a different center, back to utility but can still break most routes by 15/30 mins. I am not a runner, I take lunchs and breaks. I believe methods and sporh are what get you bonus (not much but some). Any route that pays a large bonus either has a very generous time study or they pick up easy pieces like I stated above.

Learned a while ago that the way to make bonus as a cover driver is to cover the routes where the bid driver is a 20 Pus year guy. They make sure to take full lunch and break. Use all methods during any S&V rides and time study rides. They never touch their truck. They will run over 9.5 all the time. Center teams don't like 9.5's so they do not mess to much with their time allowances. They keep them lighter then the runner and gunners. You can usually make a little bonus on these trips.

The other side of the coin, I know several 5-10 year bid drivers that have horrible dispatches. They run, they set up their truck, they don't take their lunch, and they clock out well before 9.5. Their trips suck to cover. Know 2 guys that had time studies and still "massaged their loads the day of the time study". They cut corners. Reason "I needed to get home." That one day they weren't even willing to stay out late. Result, crappy trip.

 

[browned_out]

I can guarantee if you had a pickup there you were picking up 300 50 pounders they wouldn't give you more time..which they should since a 50# box is heavier than the "average" UPS box....but they can take a few minutes away for some smalls....total bs

Excellent point! These were usally the stops called in for the utility guys to help with.

 

[browned_out]

Learned a while ago that the way to make bonus as a cover driver is to cover the routes where the bid driver is a 20 Pus year guy. They make sure to take full lunch and break. Use all methods during any S&V rides and time study rides. They never touch their truck. They will run over 9.5 all the time. Center teams don't like 9.5's so they do not mess to much with their time allowances. They keep them lighter then the runner and gunners. You can usually make a little bonus on these trips.

The other side of the coin, I know several 5-10 year bid drivers that have horrible dispatches. They run, they set up their truck, they don't take their lunch, and they clock out well before 9.5. Their trips suck to cover. Know 2 guys that had time studies and still "massaged their loads the day of the time study". They cut corners. Reason "I needed to get home." That one day they weren't even willing to stay out late. Result, crappy trip.

I took over a route like that, guy would cut corners, no lunch and run all day to get home by 5/530. On average I would go in the hole by hour an a half. They used to pull me in and ask why I couldn't do better, ride with me than. They did, got another time study and got back the hour and a half.