701 Automobile Mechanic's Turn Down Contract

701 Mechanic's turn down contract for better wages, benifits, and fair treatment of new employies. Rumor has it <font color="ff0000">****** ********</font> of the IAM wants to block 701's vote to push through his own agenda.Come on <font color="ff0000">********</font>, is this true?

<font color="ff0000">(message edited by moderator, posting full names is not permitted)</font>

Strike please, safety should be but is not an issue. Better to have our own mechanics who should be accountable for their work versus overpaid and careless contractors who replace and adjust parts over and over again.

Now the IAM wants 701 Mechanics to meet again so THEY can explain the contract to us, and vote on it again. What, do you think we're idiots? We perfectly understand the contract and you should abide by the first and only vote. Have another meeting and it will be called out of order. UPS wants to sit down and talk, so get to work and get us the contract we deserve.

I think the demands by mechanics are outrageous. I do not believe safety has anything to do with it. Apparently they do think you are idiots for wanting everything but the moon. The best thing that could happen right now is to hire contract mechanics. If the attitude of sly and greyh are an incication of mechanics attitude I think they are unsafe employees with axes to grind and would stop at nothing to get their outrageous demands. I think that you are going to price yourselves and a whole lot of others out of a job.
Yes I am a former manager and am proud of it so don't waste your post on spewing out crap about that.
Bring on the contract mechanics. You guys deserve it.

Well lr you are ranting like a typical bitter old man that can't let go of his past: as I would guess as a manager despised by the employees. You are obviously not very well informed as to the details of the contract we were offered, and are asking for nothing more than what the Teamsters asked for, and recieved. I would also like to point out that as a plant engineering mechanic and classified as multi-skilled ie. PC literate, electrical,mechanical,hydralic,etc. I am under paid by about $5 per hour according to industry standards. So put that in your pipe and smoke it tough guy. Oh, and no, I'm not going to go get another job I'll stand up and fight for what we deserve at the greatest package delivery company in the world.

Mr Greyhound.....If it werent for "bitter old men" like Ir, and thousands of others, making sacrifices and woking to make UPS the greatest delivery co in the world in the past, YOU wouldn't have a future. Take your highly skilled classification and fight to keep UPS the greatest, not fight against UPS. Sometimes, peoplle tend to overvalue their worth and need a "reality check". Can you name the companies, and what they pay, that are setting this "industry standard" you refer to?

Well lr you are ranting like a typical bitter old man that can't let go of his past: as I would guess as a manager despised by the employees

Why do you resort to name calling and guessing at someone's popularity.
Take your guess about being despised and stuff it. I would go to the bank with my reputation amoung union and management employees. When you got nothing in the bank you resort to name calling and character asasination.
Bring on the contract mechanics.

I prefer to drive one that has been worked on by our own mechanics.

Got a new engine for my 1000, they out sourced the install. Took 4 weeks for them to install it, and many of the belts and attatchments needed to be re-tightened. The automotive manager got it from an outside source, not UPS supply line. The thing NEVER ran well. Top speed on the intersate was 55 and took forever to get that high. Allways leaked oil and water. While I was on vacation last year, the cover driver blew the head gasket and bent one of the rods so bad they had to put in a new one.

Our boys put in the new one this time, and it only took them three days. Runs like it did when it was new.

One more plus. As a driver, 95% of my day involves working in/around my 1000. It only makes sense that they attend our safety meetings. Try and get the outsource guys to attend.

Everybody wants the most they can get from doing their job, manager all the way down to hourly. Nothing wrong with that. Its how you go about getting it that makes it wrong.

d The story behind the blowing up of the first one Ill tell later, it is sooooooo funny.

Greyhound....what is it that 701 is asking for that UPS won't give them?

We'll first I'll foucus on the important details.
UPS is prepared to sit down and negotiate on what we'd like to see in our contract.
A) UPS would like to hold back holiday pay for new hires for one year. (not in Teamster contract) Mechanics don't want to sell those guys short. This could lead to more concesions in the future.
B) We are not satisfied with our wage increase. We would be willing to increase that by taking a portion from our over funded pension. This is a IAM national union problem, but there may be more to it than that.
C) The prescription portion of our new insurance plan has us paying $5 for generic drugs, and the difference on brand names. The Teamsters are $5 across the board.
D) UPS wants us to take a 7 year contract with the last year wage increase to be the same as what the Teamsters will negotiate on the first year of there next contract. There contract is for 6 years. We would like a 6 year contract also, and negotiate our own wages.

By the 701 machanics voting down this contract we have told the IAM national that that we don't want to negotiate a contract on a national level, but on a local level. UPS is ok with that, but is waiting for IAM to decide weather they are going to honor our more than 2/3rds vote.

proups: I hope this is the ansewer
you where looking for.

upsvette
We are fighting no one but our own union right now. I think my early postings are aimed at the IAM and not at UPS. 701 Mechanics work very hard to make UPS a better company. As a matter of fact I was not able to responed to these postings immediatly because I'm working 7 days a week 10 to 12 hours a day on modifications and repairs to my building.


Now remember one thing here, the Teamsters (705 &amp; 710) negotiate on a local level also, and negotiate separtly from the Teamsters national on certain issues.

dannyboy
Thank You for the positive input we
appreciate it.

slyguy
Thanks also (I think) we are accountable for our work. Always have been always will be.


As for lr I doubt you've ever worked in PE. or automotive, and probable can only appreciate an $8 hour sorter who can remember there zips, and would be forced to work injured or for free just to make you look good. It's a shame that guys like you got away with your management by intimidation style of the past, and even tried to pass it on to others.} We're smarter than that now. Next time you read a posting, read it thoroughly understand it,know the facts, then respond like a quality manager would.

I hope I've made myself clear this time.



lr

Looks like the process needs a tune up ....

tieguy

How do we tune it up. I'm not sure what you mean?
Any good advice would be appreciated.

Nothing all that involved. You mentioned how your trying to negotiate at the local level and fighting your union. Seems like you have to get everyone on the same page before you can get this settled.

Subcontracting mechanical work is the start, delivering packages could be next, think before believing your CAREER(ha ha) is untouchable.

Other courier companies are o/o or get paid by the package or pick-up, no overtime and less benefits.

UPS is the minority in the industry and getting their butts kicked by ups logistics, FedEx and others. LAYOFFS ARE COMING AND OVERTIME ELIMINATION FOR TOP RATE EMPLOYEES.

Sly, Ill give you our center phone if you will call them about our overtime elimination. I would just as soon never work another hour of OT. And I am in the "top rate".

d

Dear Greyhound, how much is your pension? I'm in NYC and ours is $3600 a month. I ask you because you would rather have a wage increase now and have a lower pension. I would rather have a higher pension for when I retire. Things won't be so fine and dandy when that time comes around. And as far as prescription drugs, we only pay $5 for everything also as far as I have seen

Can anyone give me an update on where 701 Mechanics stand with their contract talks. I'm with Local 447 in NY and we haven't heard anything in some weeks now.

Our pension is comparable to yours. I think ours is a little more. I have all my union paper work in my box at work so I can't be specific right now. I'll get back to you with more. I would like to see your contract to compare it to ours. I could get you a copy of 701's.
Here's how we look at pensions here. Now this is not for everyone, but look at it this way. Investing in your 401k and IRA's is somewhat better than putting it in your pension. When your dead your pension is for the most part gone too.401k and IRA money is still there for your family to use. One mechanic figured that with wage increases and pension contributions over the next 20 years he would be making more money retired than working. His point is by the time he retires his expences would be less and would rather have some of that money now to say, put his kids through colledge. And who knows what kind of shape our pension will be in in 10 or 20 years. With all the IAM mechanics being layed off at the airlines we will be propping up the pension for a long time. Now that dosn't seem right.
As for what's going on with 701. After we voted down the contract on a local level the IAM was not happy at all and put our local into recievership and suspended our BA and DBA claimming they didn't present the contract properly. The IAM called a second vote meeting with one day notice to insure a low turn out. The contract was again voted down, but we could not get a strike vote. We lost that by 6 votes. The IAM told us that if we voted to strike that they would not support us because they already agreed to the contract with the company, and if we did not vote the contract in the company could sue the unoin for brech of contract. Sounds illegel to me. And the company should know better than get involved in such a deal. There is a meeting today as to the status of our BA &amp; DBA. I'll let you know how that goes.
Have you voted on your contract yet? If so how did or didn't it go.
Watch these IAM guy's especially the automotive coordinater, his a really slick liar.

Let's try to exchange contract proposels so we can compare them even though the IAM claims there all the same.

Hey Greyhound, I thought your pension might have been a little less then ours, but if its more better for you. I understand what you mean about wanting to have the money now set aside for you. Some people haven't invested in the 401k yet, so they will rely on the pension. Ofcourse all of us would like to have more money in our pockets but I was looking at it more of a planning for my future stand point. We have a annuity fund, which is somewhere around $2.06 an hour, thats taken from our raise, usually like $.10 each raise. I don't know who is in charge of your pension but our pension is what the teamsters get. In actuality I will be making more money retired then I am making now. But if we lowered our pension, how much more do you think you will actually see in your check? I don't understand what your DB and DBA is? Can you explain that one.As far as the contract going on a national level, do you not feel it might make us stronger? I'm in local 447 and our brotherhood is pretty small. We usually get whatever the company gives us, we felt like whether we voted yes or no on the contract it still came back as a yes. The biggest thing was our raises, our medical has always been very good. We have better benefits then the teamsters. We voted yes on our contract this go around, the trailer mechanics got a very good pay raise, we got screwd on the retirement age though. Before you could retire in 25 years regardless of age and collect 80 % of your pension and medical for any 10 years that you choose. Or if your 55 at 25 years you get full pension.}}} Now its you can retire in 25 years but you have to be atleast 50 years old but you get medical until you reach age 65. It's good if you started at age 25 or older in the company. I started when I was 20 and planned on retiring when I was 45, I got screwed there but I am getting a pretty good rate increase without my medical benefits being disrupted. They wanted us to pay towards our medical but we didnt want that. As far as trading contracts, how could we go about doing that? I can try and scan my copy of the propsed contract and see if it will go through. Do you have a e-mail address, I will send you a message privately giving you my address. I believe your the last state that has to pass the contract. My delegate came by today and said he should have a decision by the weekend from you guys I guess he's reffering to.

Grey anything new? What happend with you guys vote? I hear you'll voted yes. Is That true? Ohio is supposed to be the last State thats holding back. What have you heard about OH?

Local 701 mechanics file greivance with Labor Board for unfair suspention of BA and DBA and trusteeship of local. Meetings to be held in May. More info to come after meetings

(Message edited by greyhound61 on April 22, 2003)

Anyone interested in the whole story go to
www.free701.org