In 2008 I compared my $16.75hr with what it was worth in 1998(when I was rehired at $10.85hr) on an inflation calculator run by the University of California Davis. My $16.75 was the equivalent of $12.75 in 1998. A couple of days ago I ran the numbers on the U.S. Labor Dept's inflation calculator. My current $17.09 was worth $12.77 in 1998. I hope anyone new to the company understands this. After you factor in inflation, some years with no raise or a partial raise, and annual increases in healthcare costs, your pay in 10 years won't be much more than your starting pay in terms of purchasing power. So look at your starting pay and see if that amount will make you happy in 10 years or more. By the way, my starting pay in 1998 of $10.85hr is worth $14.52 now if I remember right. That's more than what current newhires get on this lowest payscale, the "B" payscale.
As Good as it Gets
- Thread starter vantexan
- Start date
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
Great post. This is the reality that the Kool-Aid crowd would rather not acknowledge. Let's say you're a hypothetical 2-year courier making $15.50 per hour in a market where top wage is $22.50 per hour. You're a top-notch courier with glowing reviews and a positive pro-FedEx attitude. Every day, you get done early because you're extremely efficient, bailing-out lesser couriers who aren't as good as you are. One of them is the 23-year employee on an adjoining route, from whom you grab 4 or 5 on-calls every day. He's topped-out and does as little as possible, calls-in sick whenever he wants and generally doesn't care. He's figured-out FedEx a long time ago, and is laughing at you every day while you do his work, thinking that you are the big hero.
Management loves you, and you get positive OLCC's and paper BZ's all the time. Bottom line... what does all of this extra effort get you in a company that prides itself on being a "meritocracy"? NOTHING, unless you count worthless pieces of paper as meaningful. How about a raise or some meaningful award that has a real dollar value. Like $500 for being "employee of the month" or bumping you to top wage because you clearly deserve it. Nope, can't do that.
Instead, management will now expect you to perform at this ultra-high level forever, and if you stop because there is no pay-off, then you have a "bad attitude" or are a "disgruntled employee". How much more evidence do you purple fools need to realize just how badly you are being USED?
Wages have not even come close to keeping-up with the cost of living, and when you figure-in our joke "pension" compared to UPS, it's even worse. Even if you are topped-out, your purchasing power has dropped tremendously, and now that OT is often scarce, there are not many opportunities to make-up the difference. When will you "believers" ever get the fact that FedEx will use you up like a tube of toothpaste and toss you?
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
Happy 4th, Einstein. "He" no longer gives a crap, but where's he going to go after giving 23 years to FedEx in today's economy? Sometimes people are smart enough to play the game and survive. Those that don't figure it out get the heave-ho ASAP. Remember, he's "hypothetical", OK? My point, which you missed as usual, is that there isn't any point in busting your butt because there isn't any pay-off (or payout) for doing so. I was simply agreeing with what vantexan posted. Did Maury call you from under Fred's desk to tell you to respond?
ex fed exer
Well-Known Member
once again mr fed ex is correct, hence the name. fed ex is a crap company and the workers need to start milking it for all it is worth before they find out they are
"at-will employees"
"at-will employees"
No, I didn't miss your point. You as usual are trying to have your cake and eat it too. Your claim is that FedEx will "use you up like a tube of toothpaste and toss you". In the same post you use an example of a 23 year employee who doesn't pull their weight. If that employee is hypothetical and doesn't exist, then it invalidates your example. If that employee isn't hypothetical and does exist, then it invalidates your claim.
This is an area, however, that for me is a plus for having a union. It is likely that with a contract, performance standards would be clearly spelled out. As it stands now, most managers don't appear to follow up, discipline, etc, those poor performers. If they did, more people would either improve their performance or be terminated. With a contract, it would be a lot easier for managers to discipline and terminate. Those employees would then be free to use whatever grievance process is established and hope for the best (if their grievance even gets heard). I really don't like to see people lose their job but some people are just not cut out to be couriers and need to move on to something else. Should a union come in to play and a contract ratified, this is something that would help those of us who have to keep bailing out the under-performers. It's not enough to get me to vote for a union but it is a check in the plus column.
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
A 23-year employee is probably well-versed in playing the game, and hypothetical or not, would probably be savvy enough to avoid discipline for poor performance. Most likely, he/she would just call management's bluff by lawyering-up as necessary or having enough damaging information on management to prevent them from following through on a OLCC or letter. Lots of marginal employees survive because managers cut corners and leave a trail that a veteran employee will note and use against them as need be.
If we do get a union and pay goes-up, then FedEx has every right to demand commensurate levels of performance.
On that note, we definitely agree. As I've said before, my only concern, actually, not so much a concern as a caution to those that think their performance is good enough, is the need to consider what level of performance FedEx will demand. It's easy for any of us, me included, to say "I can't do more in a day", when in reality, if you take a good look at your day there is always a few minutes here and there that are wasted. Maybe it's only 5 to 10 mins at most but that's 2 or 3 more stops. Some people probably lose a good 30 mins or more a day and are going to find themselves being required to do 10 to 20 more stops in a day. Those stops are going to come from the routes that get cut when the lowest performers lose their jobs.
If you think you were asked to do more than is reasonable over the last 12 months in terms of workload, my money would be on "you ain't seen nothing yet" should a union and contract come in to play. Some people are perfectly ok with that and in the end, may be great employees that really won't have to do much more. I suspect, however, those employees are in the minority and most employees will find their workload increasing and some employees will see a 100% decrease in workload and paycheck, if you know what I mean.
The only way we will be asked to do 20 more stops is if they do get rid of other couriers and divide their rt amongst us. And still we will have to deal with break requirements, the logistics of getting outbound to station, and safety. You'll have to factor in the extra costs of increased injuries and vehicle accidents too. This is fearmongering, nothing more. We may be pressured to get off clock sooner, but there's a limit to what can be done along these lines. But, as noted elsewhere, FedEx could make the union go away by just being a bit more generous. The vast majority of us would be satisfied with a real improvement in pay now. That they won't do that is evidence enough that our only alternative is to vote for a union, or just work to get by, nothing more, for the rest of our lives.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
This sure sounds like more parrot squaking, ala' management. The couriers can always do more.
Just one question. How much faster are you gonna ask your people to drive beyond the posted speed limit?
Just one question. How much faster are you gonna ask your people to drive beyond the posted speed limit?
I don't have any people as I'm not a manager.
I typed it slowly this time so hopefully it will sink in. I would consider myself about a 6.8 or 6.9 courier. I don't speed and I know I could do a couple more stops each day if I really wanted to. I also know that, as MrFedEx pointed out, there are long term employees who do the bare minimum to get by. There are very few employees at each station that really couldn't do at least one more stop and there are plenty of employees at most stations who could do several more stops. How do I know? Simply because I work in a large station and I've done most of the routes. I can't tell you how many times I've done more stops per hour than the regular driver and I didn't speed or do anything unsafe. I just didn't waste time. I've done the same thing in several other stations and friends that I've spoken with around the country have experienced the same.
Keep believing that I'm a manager and that couriers cannot do more. Let me know how that works out for you.
Get a clue for crying out loud. There are plenty of couriers who either lose or waste an hour or so a day. There's the 10 to 20 stops a day. It's not fearmongering, it's fact. There's no way on God's green earth that any additional pay, benefits, etc, that a union might get you is not going to be accompanied by an increase in productivity. Whether you have to do 1 more stop or 20 more stops depends on how well you perform now but don't think for a minute that what you think can be done and what FedEx thinks can be done are the same thing.
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
OSS has already made sure that most routes are operating at capacity. The slugs get away with it for all the reasons I've already listed. That said, 10-20 additional stops isn't reasonable or probably even doable for most people. One thing most of you seem to have forgotten is that the new breed of FedEx employee is usually about a "5". Fred apparently hasn't learned yet that you get what you pay for. If you try and push an incompetent employee even harder, bad things happen. Gut a company from the inside-out by scaring away most of the talent and you've got today's "star" couriers who make lots of bad decisions each and every day.
Did it ever occur to you that much of the country isn't working in a high density urban environment? And I've worked in that kind of environment too. If everyone is getting an extra 10 to 20 stops where's it coming from? Or are you saying we'll work so much faster that we'll eliminate the time necessary to do 10 to 20 stops? If that's the case prepare to see many more injuries and accidents. And Mr.FedEx is right, for every quality worker hired today seems like 4 or 5 are hired who either aren't capable or aren't willing. Good luck with that. Keep up the good work, can't wait to see what negative angle you come up with next. You've said we need better pay, but where's it going to come from without a union? I'd just as soon not see one, but what choice do we have? My question is why aren't we seeing a national vote right now? If the RLA rules have been changed what are we waiting for? Or are local votes under the NLRA preferred so we are waiting to see if the legislation passes?
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
Well then you go out there and do it.
With every word you type you convince me more and more that you're one of Fred's boys.
Oh come on, read what I wrote! Is it really that difficult? I didn't say everyone will do 10 to 20 more stops a day. Look, it's not rocket science. Let's agree, for arguments sake, that a union is the only way that pay will increase substantially. Do you really think that the union will come to the table, ask for that substantial pay increase which could easily cost $100MM/year (probably a lot more), and FedEx is just going to say "ok"? MrFedEx said OSS has already made sure most routes are at capacity but what he hasn't explained is where that capacity number comes from. Just talk to the swing drivers in any station and they'll point out the routes that really aren't at capacity. Also, take a good look around your station, any station, and you can see people wasting time on both a.m. and p.m. sorts, and when they return to the building. Those are all areas that will get a lot of focus in terms of trimming fat. It's really not a bad thing as it eliminates waste but it's a very rough environment to work in and it sucks if you are low man on the totem pole because no matter how good you are, you'll be the one fighting for a job as routes get eliminated.
As for your question about seeing a national vote now, my guess is because the unions don't want to spend the money and take the risk. They'd much rather minimize their exposure by targeting those locations that they know have a lot of union support if and when they can. Don't forget for a minute that unions are a business and they try to make sound business decisions. Trying to go after a national vote isn't a sound business decision in their eyes.
I already said I know I can do a stop or three more per day if I really wanted to.
I'm not trying to convince you of anything. I suppose in essence, anyone who is not pro-union is one of Fred's boys as he is not pro-union. In light of that, what's your point?
MrFedEx
Engorged Member
Bottom line. There is only one issue that really matters and that is Fred's continued ability to pay us less than market-level wages by means of special legislation that benefits only his company. Anything else is an extraneous argument, and that includes economic and service disruptions. It's all about the money, and Fred getting a special deal that allows him to pay less for his labor. That's it.
When you say less than market-level wages, are you only comparing to UPS? I have always understood market-level wages to mean more than comparing to just one company. If you are comparing to more than just UPS, then what sources do you have to show that Express employees are making less than market-level wages? I'm not saying you are right or wrong, but you are stating it as fact so I was curious what studies you were using.
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