socalfusions
Member
After responding to a craigslist post for a Fedex driver position I got the call back to fill out an application a couple weeks ago and have gotten the green light to start driving this week. I'm curious to what the pros and cons are since I'm driving for an independent service contractor for Fedex rather than Fedex themselves. I would have preferred to work for the main company but I'll take what I can get right now as I've been unemployed for some time.
My last job was for a similar driving position at a ISP for Amazon which was quite the unpleasant experience. It was a mess, you got a new route almost everyday and had to learn the tricks to get around, the gps they had was absolute trash and would take you to wrong streets or flat out turn off and require a reboot, you were always in such a rush that it was rare you could take your lunch and most didn't, my supervisors were incredibly stressed out at all times and often took it out on the underlings, this unsurprisingly created a ridiculous turnover rate and it was common to see drivers jumping ship months after hiring. I don't know if that gig was so unorganized due to being new or if that's just what being a courier delivery driver entails.
That's my main concern going into this, I set aside any assumptions when I took this job since Fedex has been in this business far longer and I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt. I don't mind working under a strict time frame as long as the technology doesn't impede my ability to do my job. This position requires me to drive the larger truck which they were very adamant on having at least a year of relevant driving experience in 16 ft trucks, pay starts at $140/day then increases after 6 months where you get a raise. I was a bit surprised when they explained the position as it was seemingly advertised to be operated in my local area which was nice but ended up being that the base of operations was local and the route was over a half hour away, not a big deal but it wasn't made clear at all in the job advertisement, obviously it would be nice to be closer to home in the event of an emergency or other events.
Any tips on thriving in this position? Am I right to be a little skeptical after the negative experience I had at Amazon? Will working for a Fedex ISP have any benefits on getting hired at the main company in the future? On a side note I got my commercial pilots license in the past and have always dreamed of flying freight, no passengers to deal with and all the benefits of flying a jet, will my job experience here have any benefits were I to go for such a position in the future?
My last job was for a similar driving position at a ISP for Amazon which was quite the unpleasant experience. It was a mess, you got a new route almost everyday and had to learn the tricks to get around, the gps they had was absolute trash and would take you to wrong streets or flat out turn off and require a reboot, you were always in such a rush that it was rare you could take your lunch and most didn't, my supervisors were incredibly stressed out at all times and often took it out on the underlings, this unsurprisingly created a ridiculous turnover rate and it was common to see drivers jumping ship months after hiring. I don't know if that gig was so unorganized due to being new or if that's just what being a courier delivery driver entails.
That's my main concern going into this, I set aside any assumptions when I took this job since Fedex has been in this business far longer and I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt. I don't mind working under a strict time frame as long as the technology doesn't impede my ability to do my job. This position requires me to drive the larger truck which they were very adamant on having at least a year of relevant driving experience in 16 ft trucks, pay starts at $140/day then increases after 6 months where you get a raise. I was a bit surprised when they explained the position as it was seemingly advertised to be operated in my local area which was nice but ended up being that the base of operations was local and the route was over a half hour away, not a big deal but it wasn't made clear at all in the job advertisement, obviously it would be nice to be closer to home in the event of an emergency or other events.
Any tips on thriving in this position? Am I right to be a little skeptical after the negative experience I had at Amazon? Will working for a Fedex ISP have any benefits on getting hired at the main company in the future? On a side note I got my commercial pilots license in the past and have always dreamed of flying freight, no passengers to deal with and all the benefits of flying a jet, will my job experience here have any benefits were I to go for such a position in the future?