FedEx 3Q earnings tumble 75%

[Box_Junkie]

Check this out: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090319/...ge/earns_fedex

Wonder how we are doing? I find it hard...very hard to believe FedEx is gaining market share in all segments.. Who is Fred kidding?!? In my area I see FedEx out and about, but they've been losing alot of pick-up accounts to UPS.

[moreluck]

Bad earnings report = up over $2 !! I don't get it !!

[Testicular Fortitude]

Originally Posted by moreluck

Bad earnings report = up over $2 !! I don't get it !!

Bad earnings report doesnt always affect stock price.They might have purchased thousands of shares of stock for the employees involved in the stock plan.Top executives executing options for hope of a rise in stock price or to bolster price.Earnings tumble 75%, is that projected earnings or actual earnings.My personal opinion is that Fedex stock will still continue to fall due to gross mismanagement by Fred Smith and the Board of Directors.

[DorkHead]

Originally Posted by Testicular Fortitude

Bad earnings report doesnt always affect stock price.They might have purchased thousands of shares of stock for the employees involved in the stock plan.Top executives executing options for hope of a rise in stock price or to bolster price.Earnings tumble 75%, is that projected earnings or actual earnings.My personal opinion is that Fedex stock will still continue to fall due to gross mismanagement by Fred Smith and the Board of Directors.

I personally know the Express and ground drivers in my area and see them every a.m. They both have hardly any freight in their trucks. My volume is down about 15%.

[moreluck]

Fred is grounding 14 planes.....looks like his threat not to buy from Boeing was a bluff.......why would he buy any planes when he's grounding the ones he already has. He's an idiot !

[UPSNewbie]

Originally Posted by moreluck

Fred is grounding 14 planes.....looks like his threat not to buy from Boeing was a bluff.......why would he buy any planes when he's grounding the ones he already has. He's an idiot !

The news article said he was grounding them so he can bring in newer, more fuel efficient planes.

[Testicular Fortitude]

Originally Posted by Box_Junkie

Check this out: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090319/...ge/earns_fedex

Wonder how we are doing? I find it hard...very hard to believe FedEx is gaining market share in all segments.. Who is Fred kidding?!? In my area I see FedEx out and about, but they've been losing alot of pick-up accounts to UPS.

The FEDEX corporation is losing many accounts for several reasons [1] Our sales people are pushing the very inferior and cheaper service of Ground and Home.My express customers constantly complain to me about the lousy service.[2] Fred Smith and the corporate honchos are more interested in profits than allowing the Express couriers to deliver on the Purple Promise.Late package deliveries and late or missed pick ups make Fedex not worth the extra cost of shipping.[3] The disgruntled Express courier trying to make service and commitment times doesnt have the time to take care of the needs of our customers.

[UpstateNYUPSer]

Originally Posted by UPSNewbie

The news article said he was grounding them so he can bring in newer, more fuel efficient planes.

Here's a thought--why not just upgrade the engines, one plane at a time, to the newer, more fuel efficient jet engines currently being built?

[MrFedEx]

Originally Posted by UpstateNYUPSer

Here's a thought--why not just upgrade the engines, one plane at a time, to the newer, more fuel efficient jet engines currently being built?

Take a look at my post in the FedEx Forums about the real reasons Fred is grounding the planes. Aircraft are usually engineered according to the engine technology available at the time they were designed.As a result, very few aircraft are good candidates for engine swaps. The DC-8 is one of the few exceptions, and was very successfully re-engined with CFM56's. UPS still flies them, as do other cargo carriers.

[UPSNewbie]

Originally Posted by UpstateNYUPSer

Here's a thought--why not just upgrade the engines, one plane at a time, to the newer, more fuel efficient jet engines currently being built?

Hey, I'm just relaying the unbelievable crap Fred is trying to sell.

He doesn't have enough money for his boeing orders if the reclassification goes through, but has plenty of money for his lobbyists...

[unionman]

Originally Posted by MrFedEx

Take a look at my post in the FedEx Forums about the real reasons Fred is grounding the planes. Aircraft are usually engineered according to the engine technology available at the time they were designed.As a result, very few aircraft are good candidates for engine swaps. The DC-8 is one of the few exceptions, and was very successfully re-engined with CFM56's. UPS still flies them, as do other cargo carriers.

How many aircraft does FEDX have?

[MrFedEx]

Originally Posted by unionman

How many aircraft does FEDX have?

Per our website, about 670. That includes around 200 smaller feeder planes such as ATR-42's and Cessna 208's. You can subtract 1 for the Deathstar that crashed a few weeks ago in Tokyo.

This is such a scam by Smith. He is trying every trick in the book to get Boeing and the IAM to lobby the Teamsters to back-off on his Express Carrier exemption. You can also bet that he is working every one of his political connections to the bone threatening to cut-off their payola if he doesn't get his way.

I wonder how UPS is taking this? They've been lobbying big-time against the continuation of the exemption. Maybe they should climb in bed with the Teamsters on this one and tell Fred where he can stick his precious exemption.

[FedEx2000]

So it's acceptable for UPS and the Teamsters to lobby for their side of the argument, but it's not ok for FedEx to lobby their side? Wow, that's not a double standard at all. Fact is FedEx was formed under the RLA as an express carrier, as i'm sure you are well aware. The intent being that strikes would not disrupt the movement of goods and hurt the economy. IBT can say it's about "fairness" for the workers all it wants, but I think it has more to do with their membership being down and needing a new source of dues paying members that they can pretend to stand up for. JMO.

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by FedEx2000

So it's acceptable for UPS and the Teamsters to lobby for their side of the argument, but it's not ok for FedEx to lobby their side? Wow, that's not a double standard at all. Fact is FedEx was formed under the RLA as an express carrier, as i'm sure you are well aware. The intent being that strikes would not disrupt the movement of goods and hurt the economy. IBT can say it's about "fairness" for the workers all it wants, but I think it has more to do with their membership being down and needing a new source of dues paying members that they can pretend to stand up for. JMO.

Lol....trust me if Express were to strike, UPS easily could ramp up operations to handle the Express side of the volume. There would be a few hiccups but nothing like what happened to Express when UPS went on strike.

[MrFedEx]

Originally Posted by FedEx2000

So it's acceptable for UPS and the Teamsters to lobby for their side of the argument, but it's not ok for FedEx to lobby their side? Wow, that's not a double standard at all. Fact is FedEx was formed under the RLA as an express carrier, as i'm sure you are well aware. The intent being that strikes would not disrupt the movement of goods and hurt the economy. IBT can say it's about "fairness" for the workers all it wants, but I think it has more to do with their membership being down and needing a new source of dues paying members that they can pretend to stand up for. JMO.

Nobody is arguing that FedEx cannot lobby. FedEx may have been formed as an express carrier, but it's now a systems integrator, just like UPS. Using that logic, UPS should also have an RLA exemption, shouldn't it?

Of course, the IBT wants members. But it's a given that Smith wants to keep his employees underpaid as well. If your username reflects your hire date, you only have about 5 more years until you top out...think that's fair?

And NewEnglander is right. In today's economy, UPS could handle the extra volume, so the disruption of trade and business argument is bogus too. I'm guessing you agree with Fred's blackmail tactics using Boeing as a pawn to leverage the IBT against the IAM and to pressure key Congess members to make sure that France doesn't build Fred's new planes.

Smith is a piece of crap, and if you agree with his tactics, you deserve to be under his whip.

[FedEx2000]

Your comment said that the lobbying by FWS/FedEx was nothing more than trickery and a scam. Also, that UPS should "climb into bed with the Teamsters", as if they aren't already. (Even though they aren't "officially" lobbying against it together) How is that any more respectable?

UPS tried for years to get RLA coverage, when it appeared that it wasn't going to happen, that's when they started lobbying to get FDX under the NLRA. Yes, FedEx has diversified since 1973, but the companies are run separately unlike UPS. So it's a bit more complicated in my eyes. There would be major issues if one station voted for representation, but not the the one across town, or the Ground terminal, etc. If it happened, it would/should be as a whole.....not one at a time.

Your statement about being topped out is a bit misleading since the top-of-range goes up every year, with the possible exception of this year. If everyone feels so underpaid, why would they agree to work here in the first place, let alone stick around? You accepted it, honor it. If I had stayed a courier I would have been "topped" out next year, but I chose to take advantage of tuition reimbursement and JCATS. You should look into it, you might be a whole lot happier.

I don't disagree that UPS could pick up the Express volume if in the almost impossible event that Express went Union and decided to strike, but it would not be as simple as you make it sound. 5-6M pcs/day from Express alone, plus Ground. The customers would be the ones that suffer due to poor service/no competition, and they pay the bills. So for their sake, I hope it never comes to that.

People are getting the wrong idea from the whole Boeing deal. The point is that FedEx would not be buying ANY planes, not that we would buy them from Airbus instead. If we went Union it would increase our cost structure 30%. That money has to come from somewhere, so no more new planes in the near future. Plus, that stipulation was in the contract that FedEx/Boeing signed before this became a hot topic. Boeing agreed to it.

Dang, don't make me type so much next time.......

[big_arrow_up]

The bottom line here is that Fred Smith is scared #*&$less of the possibility that his employees will unionize and needs his special bogus exemption to hinder that possibility. That is the issue here. The issue is not whether or not the IBT is only interested in getting more members. Unionization is to be left up to the employees. A process that includes voting is the only thing that should matter and it shouldn't not in anyway be affected by the employer. That exemption should have been lifted years ago.

[MrFedEx]

Originally Posted by FedEx2000

Your comment said that the lobbying by FWS/FedEx was nothing more than trickery and a scam. Also, that UPS should "climb into bed with the Teamsters", as if they aren't already. (Even though they aren't "officially" lobbying against it together) How is that any more respectable?

UPS tried for years to get RLA coverage, when it appeared that it wasn't going to happen, that's when they started lobbying to get FDX under the NLRA. Yes, FedEx has diversified since 1973, but the companies are run separately unlike UPS. So it's a bit more complicated in my eyes. There would be major issues if one station voted for representation, but not the the one across town, or the Ground terminal, etc. If it happened, it would/should be as a whole.....not one at a time.

Your statement about being topped out is a bit misleading since the top-of-range goes up every year, with the possible exception of this year. If everyone feels so underpaid, why would they agree to work here in the first place, let alone stick around? You accepted it, honor it. If I had stayed a courier I would have been "topped" out next year, but I chose to take advantage of tuition reimbursement and JCATS. You should look into it, you might be a whole lot happier.

I don't disagree that UPS could pick up the Express volume if in the almost impossible event that Express went Union and decided to strike, but it would not be as simple as you make it sound. 5-6M pcs/day from Express alone, plus Ground. The customers would be the ones that suffer due to poor service/no competition, and they pay the bills. So for their sake, I hope it never comes to that.

People are getting the wrong idea from the whole Boeing deal. The point is that FedEx would not be buying ANY planes, not that we would buy them from Airbus instead. If we went Union it would increase our cost structure 30%. That money has to come from somewhere, so no more new planes in the near future. Plus, that stipulation was in the contract that FedEx/Boeing signed before this became a hot topic. Boeing agreed to it.

Dang, don't make me type so much next time.......

Spoken like a true manager. What you say about UPS and their attempts to also be classified under the RLA is very true, but a lot of your other statements are misleading. I've been with FedEx a long time, so I've also been topped-out for a long time. But there are a lot of employees who have over 10 years in with the company that are nowhere near topping-out, and the token raises each year are quite small. Let's say I make $24.15 and am at top of range for my market. If we get a token 1% raise, maybe I'll "top-out" and maybe I won't, but the guy who has been with FedEx for 11 years and makes $19.25 per hour will get the 1% and perhaps a very small in-range pay hike. What a scam. It will take him another 5 years to even get to the $24.00 range....all of these numbers are hypothetical.

As far as "honoring commitments" goes, what about the end of the traditional pension plan? Did Fred honor his commitment there? The Piss-Poor Plan (PPP) might allow you to retire in Guatemala, but not here. There are so many of us just waiting for retirement or a boost in the economy so we can just get away from this company once and for all. Perhaps you've forgotten how much fun it can be to be an hourly, especially now. And even if you wanted to advance into management and sell your soul, there aren't any openings right now.

On the Boeing deal, how come you just can't see blackmail for what it is and admit it? Smith is still going to buy planes. He just parked 14 wide-bodies in the desert that he says aren't coming back (we'll see), and he's openly stated that he's looking to purchase more fuel-efficient aircraft than the DC10 family and the 727. That means new aircraft, with the exception of the 757.

You make good points, but they are exactly what I'd expect from someone in management who doesn't know what's really happening out in the field. Most of us cannot wait to thank Fred with a vote for the IBT.

[1989]

A GE shareholder said today "The is a cow chip company, not a blue chip."

[FedEx2000]

MrFedEx: Why do you automatically assume that I am in management? There are plenty of other jobs within FedEx besides courier and manager. I will say there are ALOT of crappy managers, but that is true of every company. There are also some very good ones. But, don't forget that these managers were almost all at one point handlers/couriers/CSAs, just like you......I understand that it's all for show, but to generalize it and say "spoken like a true manager" is ridiculous. If you honestly feel that management has nothing better to do than make your life miserable, you have either given them a reason to do so, or you are extremely paranoid. They have plenty of other things to worry about. Ops Manager is by far the most difficult position within FedEx, anyone that disagrees with that has no idea what the job entails. There is a reason that the divorce rate for FedEx mgrs is 70%, it's not b/c they are all out playing golf all day or home with their families. You have to balance the needs of the employees with the best interests of the customer/company, not an easy task. I just don't think it's fair to lump the good with the bad.

[MrFedEx]

Originally Posted by FedEx2000

MrFedEx: Why do you automatically assume that I am in management? There are plenty of other jobs within FedEx besides courier and manager. I will say there are ALOT of crappy managers, but that is true of every company. There are also some very good ones. But, don't forget that these managers were almost all at one point handlers/couriers/CSAs, just like you......I understand that it's all for show, but to generalize it and say "spoken like a true manager" is ridiculous. If you honestly feel that management has nothing better to do than make your life miserable, you have either given them a reason to do so, or you are extremely paranoid. They have plenty of other things to worry about. Ops Manager is by far the most difficult position within FedEx, anyone that disagrees with that has no idea what the job entails. There is a reason that the divorce rate for FedEx mgrs is 70%, it's not b/c they are all out playing golf all day or home with their families. You have to balance the needs of the employees with the best interests of the customer/company, not an easy task. I just don't think it's fair to lump the good with the bad.

There are plenty of jobs at Fedex, if you want to live in Memphis.I was speaking of non-JCATS positions in my earlier post, and yes,there are still hourly jobs that are transfers. My comment wasn't "all for show", because you're parroting all of management's talking points. Being an Ops manager is a thankless job, and I've never said otherwise. I'm smart enough to have seen the carnage and thought better of heading into management myself.

When I criticize managment on this site, my comments are almost always directed at the talking heads in MEM, who make the policies and procedures that lower level management gets to enforce, even if they don't make any sense. I get along fine with my managers because I'm a "7" employee. They don't have any reason to bother me. But to look at the big picture, FedEx is a very troubled organization, and they have not been doing the hourly employee any favors for a very long time. Even if the union is voted down, Fred has his hands full with some very unhappy workers. If you were still a courier, would you be happy with the direction FedEx has gone over the last 5 years? Even before this recession, Smith has been on a relentless crusade to cut hours and benefits, extend top-out times, and increase productivity. He's gotten the productivity, so where's the payoff for us? There isn't one, unless you count working harder for less a benefit.

[FedEx2000]

I have only been out of the courier position for about 16 months, so I am not that far removed from it. I still deal with and have many friends that are couriers, none of which feel as you do about the union etc. Would they like more pay? Of course, who doesn't. I took a 5% cut, no bonus or merit increase, and lost the 401k match just like everyone else. All this less than 2 weeks before the hourly employees got their bonus payout at the end of the year. Sure, it was already funded, but they could have easily not paid it out. Was I glad to take a pay cut? No, but I would gladly do it again if it means saving hourly employees from losing their jobs. I work just as hard everyday for less pay than before.

So what if UPS pays their drivers more per hour? Why should any company be required to pay their employees the same wages as another company? Do all managers at FedEx make as much as managers at UPS? I honestly have no idea, but if you have a better offer, take it. Or don't, it's up to you.

I enjoyed being a courier very much, but I was not so naive to think that we were the only ones that mattered. You say that looking at the big picture, FedxEx is a troubled company and hasn't done any favors for the hourlies. Well I would say that looking at the big picture means taking into account everyone, not just the hourlies. There are many difficult decisions that are made which may not make sense to many people throught the organization, but they often don't understand them and choose to criticize rather than educate themselves. (Not implying that you are one of these people)

After all, it is a businees, the whole idea is to make money. If you had founded FedEx, or another company, I doubt you (or I) would be so different. At least we don't have a CEO/COO/CFO that came in for 6 mos. ran it into the ground and got millions to sit by and watch it collapse.

[MrFedEx]

You had stated that our operating costs would rise about 30% if we went IBT. If you add up the money Fred picked from our pockets with the pension takeaway, and the many years of underpaying hourlies with extended top-outs and denyed market level raises, that's probably about 30%, isn't it?

You said you weren't management, but you also said you just took a 5% pay cut. Which is it?

The couriers you reference as not wanting to go union....do you think they'd actually be honest with someone in management given the unspoken but very prevalent anti-union attitude of the corporation? Being openly pro-union at FedEx is like painting a bullseye on your back. The efforts to get rid of you would start as soon as managment put you on the watch list, which does exist (illegally). At my location, most employees have finally figured out that PSP is a joke, and that Fred is not their friend. It's taken a long time, but even the most purple among us are starting to wise up. I'd say it's about 75/25 for the Teamsters at my station.

Why do you think the SFA has been delayed this year? First, Fred is awaiting the decision on the RLA. Second, he's seen the results of the recent Loyalty Survey, and I'm guessing they were not favorable. And third, he will definitely not raise pay if he successfully blackmails Congress, so he can save himself a few hundred million if he gets his way on that front.

I've been approached to go into management on numerous occasions, and I've always stayed away because I love my family too much to subject them to it. I also disagree with Fred's USMC managment credo. Maybe it works in the Marine Corps, but it doesn't translate well into the business world. Your 70% figure might even be low on the divorce rate.

I'm glad you've found a happy place at FredEx, and maybe you're one of the good managers that are so scarce at Express. Most wouldn't even understand this conversation, and many wouldn't be able to express themselves very well in this forum. You're obviously much brighter than most of them. That's what happens when you scare away the prime candidates and accept what's left over.

[brownmonster]

Keep up this intelligent conversation boys. It will keep FEATW and her inane drivel away.

[FedEx2000]

It wasn't just management that took the 5% cut, it was pretty much all salaried positions below MD/Exec level. I don't believe that I said I wasn't a manager, I just asked why you assumed I was one based on an earlier post. If so, I apologize for the confusion.

There is absolutely no such thing as the "watch list" you refer to. If there is, it is specific to your location and done w/o FedEx approval. I worked at 5 different stations over the years and have never heard of or seen such a list. My guess is that it's either a nasty rumor, or a ridiculous scare tactic by a crappy management team.

The couriers I refer to are some of my best friends that I worked with, not employees that report to me. They have absolutely no reason to lie about or deny anything to me. Maybe I have just been lucky to have worked in good stations, but I have yet to meet a single courier (when I was a courier) that wanted the union. Not to say there weren't some at the station that did, but out of approx. 500-600 couriers I never met any that did.

Time will tell if the employees want the union, but I just don't think it will benefit the company/customers as a whole. They can promise you the world, but if FedEx doesn't agree to their terms it does no good. There will always be someone else willing to do the job, especially in this economy.

I can't imagine a place where an employee and a manager have to have a babysitter at every meeting. Sometimes, with certain people, it is needed. I guess I would just like to think that two adults working for the same company could work things out rationally rather than trying to get the other person fired. In a perfect world, right?