An ugly prediction that you can hold me to...

[UnconTROLLed]

Here`s my thoughts. If conditions are in " your opinion" not safe, by union contract you aren`t required to do it.
Say you don`t know how or am afraid to ride a bike.
Fall off the bike and be injured for the x-mas rush.

I hear it comes with training wheel, but only on one side (right-hand turns only!)...so if you get injured that meant you took a left hand turn and you are liable -not following methods

 

[cachsux]

This is a conspiracy! I have stumbled on insider info on this very website, Cheryll and UPS are in this together to brainwashing us into thinking this is an appropriate form of delivery!​

 

[dilligaf]

when i drove we couldn't drive over 60 hours a week.so if we delivered 14 hours only be a 4 day week.couldn't go over 12hours a day.

That hasn't changed Kappy. They will not let us work more than 11.99 hrs a day during peak.

 

[BrownBlue]

Same plan here in NW Wa. It's all hills here except, the farmlands. Scott Davis and his IE goons need to leave the planet and head back to Zolar. Maybe in Zolar it will work, but not here. On the flip side, expect customers to leave after the terrible service we provide again over christmas, so the long hours will be a blessing to the multitude of layoffs after peak. God I hate IE, bunch of snot-nosed grads pretending they know what the heck they are doing.

 

[MobileBA]

Does it rain in the Pacific NW? How are they going to keep those packages dry?

 

[Dis-organized Labor]

Can't they get a bigger trailer??

 

[Thumbster]

(speaking of bigger trailers) I heard that they are going to try this with feeders too...sleeper teams on tandems..

 

[Bubblehead]

Will the bike have a sissy bar and a banana seat?

I'm heard Paul Reubens was going to be working for with his famous bike.

 

[soberups]

Am I reading this correctly? "used as helpers or making deliveries on mountain bikes. And the guys on the mountain bikes would be high or low seniority drivers? Is this in the job description? If the drivers will indeed be riding the bikes, what does the union have to say about this?

The seniority drivers who are used as helpers or bike riders will be paid full driver wage as if they were driving a package car. The only cost savings that can be realized is by not renting a vehicle....the labor costs will be the same.

None of the drivers who are being planned out as bike riders have bid routes. Being assigned to a bike route vs. a pkg car route will be based upon seniority, which is how unassigned drivers are currently dispatched anyway. Nothing will be any different except for the vehicle they will be assigned to operate.

No off-the-street helpers can be used unless all seniority drivers are working, so we arent looking at any layoff issues.

We have a couple of drivers who say they are actually looking forward to being on the bikes; with the current, brutal level of Telematics-inspired production harassment and micromanagement that is now commonplace, being assigned to a bicycle will actually be a relief from the stress. There will be no Telematics to deal with and no way the company will ever be able to hold a driver accountable for any level of production if he is stuck pedalling a bike around. Of course, that stress relief will come at a price on the days when we get an inch or more of nonstop pouring rain.

 

[soberups]

I wonder what the union thinks about this. Also what would happen if every driver said he can't ride a bike?

No one will be forced to ride a bike, if they dont want to ride they will work on car as a helper at full driver wage.

 

[hurricanegunner]

The seniority drivers who are used as helpers or bike riders will be paid full driver wage as if they were driving a package car. The only cost savings that can be realized is by not renting a vehicle....the labor costs will be the same.

None of the drivers who are being planned out as bike riders have bid routes. Being assigned to a bike route vs. a pkg car route will be based upon seniority, which is how unassigned drivers are currently dispatched anyway. Nothing will be any different except for the vehicle they will be assigned to operate.

No off-the-street helpers can be used unless all seniority drivers are working, so we arent looking at any layoff issues.

We have a couple of drivers who say they are actually looking forward to being on the bikes; with the current, brutal level of Telematics-inspired production harassment and micromanagement that is now commonplace, being assigned to a bicycle will actually be a relief from the stress. There will be no Telematics to deal with and no way the company will ever be able to hold a driver accountable for any level of production if he is stuck pedalling a bike around. Of course, that stress relief will come at a price on the days when we get an inch or more of nonstop pouring rain.

Steve had a good answer for the rain problem: the Conestoga Wagons! The Smithsonian has several on display. I'm sure they'd be happy to loan UPS a few.

 

[pickup]

That hasn't changed Kappy. They will not let us work more than 11.99 hrs a day during peak.

if they need packages delivered late on a friday, no using d.o.t 60 hour rules as a copout, you can still ride a bike even if you are out of hours.

 

[dilligaf]

if they need packages delivered late on a friday, no using d.o.t 60 hour rules as a copout, you can still ride a bike even if you are out of hours.

I think that you are right PU. But I also believe that you would have to get authorization. We are not allowed to go over 11.99 without it.

 

[MobileBA]

Does the company get carbon credits? Are the bike lanes closer to the custumners doors?

 

[pudg00]

Will you get a horn for backing?

 

[soberups]

Does it rain in the Pacific NW? How are they going to keep those packages dry?

On average, there are only 4 or 5 days in December when it doesnt rain.

The "plan" is to keep the packages dry in the back of the little bike trailers by covering them with a tarp. Apparently, in IE world the wind never blows.

 

[upsman68]

A couple of years ago we used golf carts in neighborhoods. It worked really good. I had 4 of those helpers and I had an easy peak season.

They mentioned they were going to do it this year.

 

[Thumbster]

With my luck I'd get the bike and my Sup on the handlebars for a 3 day ride...

 

[JustTired]

With my luck I'd get the bike and my Sup on the handlebars for a 3 day ride...

LOL

This has to be a numbers game. It's definitely not about saving money. There can't be an area as "dense" as the person who thought this up. I sure picked the right 'tag line' those many months ago (see below).

Apart from the weather and terrain, I'd be tempted to opt for the bike. Sounds like a way to make for a pretty easy peak. Just mosey on down the street, telling the customer that you'll be back with the rest of their pkgs in 15-20 minutes.

Let's see:
The cost of the bike and trailer
cost of rental of the POD
possible cost of renting a place to put it
cost (mostly of delivery time) of the driver who has to unload and then load the POD.
Paying someone $30/hr($45 after 8) to ride a bicycle back and forth from POD to house to reload.
Paying the driver mileage to the POD and back home (only if they live a lot closer to the center than the POD location, I assume).
potential damaged packages from weather on way to delivery point.

Yep!! Got to be a numbers game...only reason to spend that much money.

 

[stevetheupsguy]

Here's the bike they were talking about. Silly sober thought it was something else, LOL.