What kind of harassment are you experiencing in your center?

[688upsteamster]

In missouri the big thing this week is drivers who are over on the standards by one hour are called in the office and reminded of the methods and asking to sign a sheet of paper. Of course we refuse to sign anything but paychecks and dot required paper work. We filed grievances under article 37 'fair day's work for fair day's pay.

 

[Coldworld]

the allowances are so out of wack, and most management knows it. Its absolutely ridiculous. There have been people on here that have said they received a new time study by the gps, and have made up time, or a whole center makes up time collectively, and the mgt then throws out the new studies.....mnnn how fair is that, its quite pathetic and unethical actually.

 

[sealbasher]

our center manager told us we are all fired,just a matter of which day

 

[Coldworld]

our center manager told us we are all fired,just a matter of which day

thats the ups spirit (violently barfing)

 

[soberups]

Always remember that, when push comes to shove, you can ultimately make your supervisor more miserable than he can make you.

I get along quite well with my management team, and have for many years now, but occasionally a new one comes along who needs to be reminded of this fact. When the heat is on, I will turn it up even hotter. I have been thru seven center managers and at least 10 or 15 on car sups in my time on the center; the bottom line is that I am still here and they arent. I dont like pissing contests but the bottom line is that I have a bigger bladder, higher boots, and a much greater tolerance for getting wet and smelly than any manager will ever have.

 

[Coldworld]

Always remember that, when push comes to shove, you can ultimately make your supervisor more miserable than he can make you.

I get along quite well with my management team, and have for many years now, but occasionally a new one comes along who needs to be reminded of this fact. When the heat is on, I will turn it up even hotter. I have been thru seven center managers and at least 10 or 15 on car sups in my time on the center; the bottom line is that I am still here and they arent. I dont like pissing contests but the bottom line is that I have a bigger bladder, higher boots, and a much greater tolerance for getting wet and smelly than any manager will ever have.

good info, any pointers you care to throw our way!

 

[soberups]

good info, any pointers you care to throw our way!

Be as consistent as possible; know your contract; have an excellent attendance record with no history of absenteeism or tardiness. Know and follow the methods; work as instructed; Be polite and cheerful with a positive attitude; but ALWAYS be willing to allow management to face the consequences of their poor planning and decision making. Sometimes, you just have to allow things to fail in order to get the underlying problem solved. Treat their problems the same as you would treat a wallet of theirs that you found on the street...."here, this is yours, it isnt mine, I dont want it need it or deserve it so I am giving it right back to you." Never show fear, no matter how scared you might be. Once they have succeeded in learning how to intimidate you, you might as well just wear a sign that says "make me your bitch". Always seek to outdo your management; if they are nice and friendly and cooperative then you need to be even nicer and more friendly and more cooperative. If they want to get down and dirty then you need to be willing to get downer and dirtier. Let them decide which sort of enviornment they wish to create, and allow them to reap either the benefits or the consequences of that choice.​

 

[tieguy]

Be as consistent as possible; know your contract; have an excellent attendance record with no history of absenteeism or tardiness. Know and follow the methods; work as instructed; Be polite and cheerful with a positive attitude; but ALWAYS be willing to allow management to face the consequences of their poor planning and decision making. Sometimes, you just have to allow things to fail in order to get the underlying problem solved. Treat their problems the same as you would treat a wallet of theirs that you found on the street...."here, this is yours, it isnt mine, I dont want it need it or deserve it so I am giving it right back to you." Never show fear, no matter how scared you might be. Once they have succeeded in learning how to intimidate you, you might as well just wear a sign that says "make me your bitch". Always seek to outdo your management; if they are nice and friendly and cooperative then you need to be even nicer and more friendly and more cooperative. If they want to get down and dirty then you need to be willing to get downer and dirtier. Let them decide which sort of enviornment they wish to create, and allow them to reap either the benefits or the consequences of that choice.​

Lol, if you're doing this much plotting and planning every day then the boss has already made you his .

 

[cachsux]

While I`ve been in Sober`s shoes I gotta give the point to Tie.

 

[Catatonic]

They keep telling me I have a BO (Body Order) problem.

One guy pointed at me, then pointed at his butt and then shrugged ... we became good friends though.

 

[Coldworld]

Be as consistent as possible; know your contract; have an excellent attendance record with no history of absenteeism or tardiness. Know and follow the methods; work as instructed; Be polite and cheerful with a positive attitude; but ALWAYS be willing to allow management to face the consequences of their poor planning and decision making. Sometimes, you just have to allow things to fail in order to get the underlying problem solved. Treat their problems the same as you would treat a wallet of theirs that you found on the street...."here, this is yours, it isnt mine, I dont want it need it or deserve it so I am giving it right back to you." Never show fear, no matter how scared you might be. Once they have succeeded in learning how to intimidate you, you might as well just wear a sign that says "make me your bitch". Always seek to outdo your management; if they are nice and friendly and cooperative then you need to be even nicer and more friendly and more cooperative. If they want to get down and dirty then you need to be willing to get downer and dirtier. Let them decide which sort of enviornment they wish to create, and allow them to reap either the benefits or the consequences of that choice.​

Sober can you elaborate on this??

 

[Overpaid Union Thug]

I think what Sober is trying to say is that if we do the job correctly each and every day then it's pretty much smooth sailing.

 

[soberups]

Sober can you elaborate on this??

Dealing with UPS management is a lot like dealing with an alcoholic. When we care about the alcoholic...or the company we work for...we are often unwilling to say "no" to them, or draw boundaries, or tell them the things they really need to hear. With the best of intentions, we slowly allow their problems to become our problems. We come home to the alcoholic passed out on the floor in a puddle of puke so we help them to bed, clean up the vomit, and do what we can to make them comfortable. In so doing we enable the behavior to continue because we prevent them from suffering the natural consequences of their actions.

The perfect example of this at UPS is the driver who skips his lunch in order to avoid service failures on a route that UPS has made a business decision to overdispatch. He thinks he is doing the right thing and being "a team player" when in fact he is simply enabling management to continue their incorrect behavior because they never have to deal with the natural consequence of missed packages. Forcing management to deal with the reality of missed stops is sort of like stepping back and allowing the alcoholic to wake up on the floor with vomit in his hair....it isnt pretty but it is often the only way to draw attention to the reality of the problem and motivate them to make different choices.

UPS is quite fond of placing impossible and utterly ridiculous expectations upon its people. Once you have notified your management that there is a problem, and it has become obvious that they have no intention of solving it, then you must simply allow the situation to fail so that the consequences of that failure become so painful that your management will be forced to deal with the problem instead of continuing to ignore it.

 

[BLACKBOX]

If ever I have to be called to the carpet for something I've done I'd like to have Soberups in the office with me. I can turn to him and consult with him like a lawyer. He sure knows his stuff more than our current shop steward.

Soberups...are you available for hire??

 

[1989]

I get a harassment call every morning asking me what route I want to do or if I want the day off.

 

[Coldworld]

Dealing with UPS management is a lot like dealing with an alcoholic. When we care about the alcoholic...or the company we work for...we are often unwilling to say "no" to them, or draw boundaries, or tell them the things they really need to hear. With the best of intentions, we slowly allow their problems to become our problems. We come home to the alcoholic passed out on the floor in a puddle of puke so we help them to bed, clean up the vomit, and do what we can to make them comfortable. In so doing we enable the behavior to continue because we prevent them from suffering the natural consequences of their actions.

The perfect example of this at UPS is the driver who skips his lunch in order to avoid service failures on a route that UPS has made a business decision to overdispatch. He thinks he is doing the right thing and being "a team player" when in fact he is simply enabling management to continue their incorrect behavior because they never have to deal with the natural consequence of missed packages. Forcing management to deal with the reality of missed stops is sort of like stepping back and allowing the alcoholic to wake up on the floor with vomit in his hair....it isnt pretty but it is often the only way to draw attention to the reality of the problem and motivate them to make different choices.

UPS is quite fond of placing impossible and utterly ridiculous expectations upon its people. Once you have notified your management that there is a problem, and it has become obvious that they have no intention of solving it, then you must simply allow the situation to fail so that the consequences of that failure become so painful that your management will be forced to deal with the problem instead of continuing to ignore it.

understood, and it seems to be the ol' you do it once, and they are going to expect you to do it again, and again, and again..........

 

[soberups]

Lol, if you're doing this much plotting and planning every day then the boss has already made you his .

I dont do any plotting or planning. I just show up on time every day ready to bust my ass and treat my management with the same level of courtesy and respect that they choose to show me. Its pretty much a no-brainer.

 

[soberups]

understood, and it seems to be the ol' you do it once, and they are going to expect you to do it again, and again, and again..........

Skipped lunches are like heroin to management. One time is too many and a thousand will never be enough. The sooner you can wean them off, the better off you will be. Getting them through the withdrawals can be a bitch, and like any junkie they will whine and cry and lie and manipulate to get their fix back, but you just have to be strong and give them the "tough love" that they need to get through it.

 

[dillweed]

soberups has summed this up as best it could be. UPS often preaches one thing but expects another. The one thing pt sups hates most is when we follow the safety rules they dish out every morning.

I've recently been harassed up one side and down the other for not working outside my power zone and for shutting the belt down during severe egress. On the egress they yell for me to unlock the belts so they can run the outbound. I fell for that once and learned that they turned the feed back on before I was cleaned up. So many of the guys let the pkgs build up and trip over them for what, pride? I'd rather have my body intact that type of pride.

Too much flow? They say "do the best you can". Twenty minutes later they come up with a paper stating my weak pieces per hour. bleh - go away kid, ya bother me.

Two young, burly men unloading on a fifty year old woman? That red button is close enough to reach regardless of fallen pkgs. One young, burly unloader PLUS a pt sup unloading on me. Red button plus my favorite and very loud yell of "what's the matter with you?" Everyone loves it except the red-faced sup who scurries away like a whipped dog.

Gosh, I don't like to act like that. Want to do the job, help keep the flow moving and feel I've done a good job for the day. It's not easy to have a good day after the center manager says I suck and offers to put me on sticker slapping with a dollar an hour pay cut. The old grey mare ain't what she used to be but not yet ready for pasture.

Sorry this turned into a rant. It appears that the anger and resentment has followed me home for the weekend.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Sorry this turned into a rant. It appears that the anger and resentment has followed me home for the weekend.

Our center has solved this by placing an "anger and resentment" bucket by the P/T time clock. P/Ters are told to leave these items here when they punch out and to retrieve them when they come in the following morning. So far it seems to have worked out well.