Contractors or Employees

Ruling against Fred-Ex. This could be a huge windfall for us.
With the contractors being considered employees, and the back pay for wages and supplies, ie..fuel,
uniforms, maintance. Starting with Ca., hopefully the other states follow suit.
O.K. boys and girls....can we get Fred Smith to say along with us.......I know you can...IBT. That's very good Fred, now go eat your lunch, because we are getting ready to kick your Ex.
If the IBT focuses on these girlymen in blue, we will show them what we are made of.
Patience always pays off.
Feederdude

This has got to be a major stumbling block for Fed Ex-----it should start effecting their stock price!!

This is something that has huge ramifications, and faced with stiff competition from DHL, could cause Fed Ex to look for a quick fix.....it's payback time for them!

We can only hope that there is some type of organizing attempt from our Brotherhood in the near future.....like right before Christmas!!

"Right before Christmas" is now. It will not be long before the stores start getting their Christmas merchandise.

I imagine appeals will be made just as far as they can take it. I think FDX will lose and their world will be changed forever.

As for this news effecting stock price? Press Release was issued 7/26/2004 and I got curious and searched Yahoo Stock news for FedEx and there in absolutely nothing on this. Are those guys good or just lucky?

The bad is obvious in this deal for FedEx if it holds but like afups said appeals will be lenghty. It's positive (for UPS) and more importantly right now could have some effect with some contractors and FedEx concerning attitudes and relationships. We need to just sit back and let this thing run it's course. Old RPS had this challenged by IRS but this case has a new twist using State of California labor law. It is an election year and politicians can be bought and sold and with it laws changed. Put on a pot of coffee cause this one will be a long wait folks. JMO.

the date of the article is 2003 ??????????

We can only hope that there is some type of organizing attempt from our Brotherhood in the near future
I am not totally up to date and current on all of my Labor Law, but.......
The IBT will still be faced with the same problem though. If the "contractor" FedEx Ground employees are ruled to be regular, old FedEx employees, they will the be covered under the Railway Act, just like their "express" co-workers, thus making organizing them virtually impossible. Remember under the Railway Act the entire company has to be organized as a whole, all at once and nationwide,together at one time. Not entirely impossible, but pretty close to it.

jwert,
Nice job. You are absolutely correct. WOW are we asleep at the wheel.

As for organizing FedEx and the Railway Act, what is even more interesting is which way does UPS go on this. Strip FedEx from the Railway Act protections or push to have UPS included under the Railway Act. If UPS gets placed under the Railway Act they would benefit from some strike protections but FedEx would still benefit from protections against organizing efforts and probably remain nonunion but if striped from the Railway Act then the door is wide open to the IBT to organize which IMO is the course UPS should support. This situation would hit FedEx on the bottomline while also if FedEx remains at it's present strength after being organized by the IBT then this could be a benefit to the situations at many multi-employer pension funds and in some respect UPS itself. Again this thinking requires certains things to take place that in reality may not and it's not without other pitfalls longer term for UPS but just on the level of causal thinking I'd think removing FedEx from the Railway Act is the greater thing for UPS. JMO that may or maynot be correct at the end of the day.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't the Air Express drivers classified under the RLA, while these newly classified ground employees would fall under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)? Why else would FedEx classify these drivers as independent contractors, even if some of them were RPS contractors before they bought them out?

“Why else would FedEx classify these drivers as independent contractors, even if some of them were RPS contractors before they bought them out?”

Because the intention was for them to be independent contractors. The contracts they signed (as I understand it) said the same.

The court evidently believed that a segment of their workforce (single work area) were actually employees, mainly due to the amount of control FedEx has over their day and the way they do their job.

That’s easy enough to fix. But before they “fix” it they’re going to be sure that everybody is on the same page and there aren’t going to be any issues after the fixing is over.

The court seemed to pooh-pooh the idea of opening up the single work area folks to multi area contracts (the court ruled that the MWA people were independent contractors for sure) – but that is exactly what is going on here. One guy in town “owned” three areas about 18 months ago and now owns 7 or so. But that may be a localized deal that isn’t happening anywhere else. He seems to like the setup though.

That particular man owns a half-dozen (or more) businesses locally. Everything from auto repair/gas stations, a towing service and impound lot, FedEx ground trucks/routes, a landscaping company, a hair salon that his daughters run, and at least one restaurant. In his case I think it is a make-work project for his extended family (because almost all the employees are related to him in some way and there are a LOT of them).

Will the brotherhood now organize fedex? As part of the dues increase we were told it would be used to organize fedex. I haven't heard a thing since.

Thanks for your insight Glenn. This issue is obviously more complex than the surface appearance. In any organizing attempt, no doubt what constitutes a potential "bargaining unit employee" would have to be specifically defined. If and when the IBT attempts to organize, it should be interesting to see how FedEx will respond. Even though FedEx is a competitor, I would hate see another Overnite situation unfold.

I'm a so called contractor. Fedex is in deep trouble. All the current and past contractors are looking into filing a major lawsuit. The word is spreading on our board and in our terminals. We are looking forward to this. From what we understand we will be able to have our trucks paid for and fuel or FDX will have to make us true contractors.

Bill

Bill,

Could you post a link to the FedEx board? Speaking for myself, I would be interested in reading what FedEx people are saying pro and con about this subject. It would help to broaden perspectives. BTW, are you aware of any FedEx version of the Brown Cafe? If yes, could you post that link as well? Thanks.

my2cents-here's a link for a site that I've been going to: www.fedexaminer.com

FYI regarding the link to fedexaminer.com

I have done some research about that web site and it is registered by a San Francisco lawyer, **** ********* {name removed by moderator}. My guess is that it is most likely a tool he is using to recruit clients for a class action law suit. He fails to disclose this information on the site and appeals to users to post a link to the site to help "spread the word". Rather deceptive if you ask me.

After reading through that web site a little more I did find a reference to the owner of the site:

http://www.fedexaminer.com/FedEx/mod...Information#28

Although this website is owned by an attorney you are not entitled to legal advice. You may get opinions and suggestions from law students or attorneys that are members if they respond to something you post but please remember they do not represent you and are only offering a FREE opinion unless you sign a retainer agreement. In extreme circumstances we may contact you privately if we have questions about something you post. Please contact the Admin Group (username Admin) by sending a PM (Private Message) if you experience legal issues from using this website.

Wow! Thanks guys. I'm going to check it out....

hr-been to the site several times. Mainly go to the forums and have seen no soliciting for lawsuits. The forums are like ours where people can voice their opinions. the main thing I've noticed is how little used it is compared to us. I found 4 references to the lawsuit and two of those were duplicates on different forums. I've found it one way to keep an eye on Fred. JMO!

Geez, you have to become a member just to view the threads. I'll pass on this site for the time being, but will keep it in mind.

Looks like Fed-Ex is doing good on wall street!!!

http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/23/news...reut/index.htm

Let me answer a few questions about the new website fedexaminer.com

1. The website is only 2 months old.
2. It is owned by a workmans' compensation attorney and is not used to recruit clients (he has his hands full with me, LOL)
3. FedEx has a policy about employees making public statements/posts so you have to become a member to view the forums so they are not public.
4. The attorney has to disclose that he owns the website (see the terms).

Here is the story of how FedExaminer came about:

I work at FedEx and hired the attorney in December 2002 because FedEx denied an injury claim they submitted with their CMS Sedgewick.

FedEx began doing some illegal things with my lawsuit and so the attorney reserved a domain name to post the documents. FedEx promptly suspended me, issued a writeup and demanded the domain name he registered (it was parked at the time) boycottfedex.info (please visit this URL, you will get a kick out of the site slogan!)

I was suspended because I could not give FedEx the password so they could take the domain name and FedEx could not use the notarized paperwork they forced me to sign since I was not the owner. I filed a GFT and lost the first step, then FedEx sent me a letter threatening to fire me if I disrupt their business again.

Since Fedex attacked us and has a habit of closing down employee websites such as fedup.com, fedexgroundbeef.com, fedex pilots.com the attorney decided to start a mega site with support from the ACLU, Stanford University Law Department, University Of San Francisco Law Department and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (eff.org) so fedexaminer.com was born.

There is going to be quite a fight if FedEx tries to take away FedExaminer.com

Because of the way FedEx has handled things (with me) there are two lawsuits and a complaint filed by the San Francisco Human Rights Commission pending. We plan to post some of the documents on the FedExaminer website after I leave FedEx.

Who am I? Badboy on FedExaminer.com

I am not a big fan of FedEx since they have treated me like crap and are trying everything to fire me (you would not believe the stuff they pull).

Please support the site and help spread the word. We need to get as many people active on the website as we can. We also need more links to the site so our search engine rank improves which will allow FedEx employees to find it.

Any promotional help or ideas would be appreciated. How about a link on the browncafe.com website main page?

I have been told that fedexaminer.com is just waiting for written permission to post the documents from this lawsuit including the two press releases and judges decision. The Law Firm has an office in San Francisco so I will ask the site owner to check again today since he is also in San Francisco. Word is just getting around about the lawsuit to the ground and home delivery contractors.

Doesn't the same lawyer own the boycott fedex site? It still seems to me that these sites were designed to attract disgruntled fedex employees, like throwing chum into the water when you are fishing for sharks. He wants a link to his web sites to be added from the browncafe because it will improve their ranking in the search engines.

Badboy, do you really believe that your lawyer doesn't want other clients? He really has his hands full with you? What he really wants is to become the attorney that disgruntled fedex employees turn to when they get a papercut. Wake up buddy, you are being exploited.

I disagree with what you say about the lawyer. He does not like dealing with FedEx and I don't think he is looking for more clients there. There is no solicitation for his legal services.

He could have easily put information on his website to attract potential FedEx clients but I think it would be more geared to the cases he has won for his clients like other law firms have done.

FedEx employees can not own websites about fedex so the only way to have one is for someone else to take the ownership risk. You see what happened to teamster.net and their lawsuit.

Only time will tell the future.

Dear HR: Why is it that people have a tendency to attack that which they do not understand, let alone know anything about (save for checking the WHOIS to see the ownership)? Indeed, FedExaminer is my website. In the future, it would be much apprecaited if you would verify your information before making allegations that you cannot substantiate. FedExaminer is only in its infancy, and with luck, it will become just as successful as BrownCafe. FedExaminer was not created to obtain additional clients ... I have more than enough clientele such that I do not need to look for new means of advertising. What was the original purpose of BrownCafe? Was it not to allow employees of UPS a platform to share information, such as gripes, etc.? I own FedExaminer because FedEx employees are not permitted to own a site that is critical of their company, not that my site is devoted to being critical ... if the company does good things, there is nothing to prevent users from making positive comments. In addition, my site is dedicated to free speech and does not censor postings, save for elimination of expletives (and this is done automatically). Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to respond.