To give a bit of backgound, I am a relatively new driver hired off the street (consider myself very lucky). I just hit my 1 year anniversary of my seniority date.
As a cover driver I've had the "luxury" of covering a fair number of routes. Enough to have a good idea which routes are easier/harder than others. And which routes I would do better/worse at when assigned to them.
One of the "perks" that this center features is a satellite center. At this satellite center, they preload and dispatch approximately 15 routes that are geographically far enough from the main center to justify its existence. They get their packages (except for air) shuttled in from the main center. So the routes typically depart from the satellite center about an hour later than the primary center.
Most of the routes would be run by bid drivers who are "domiciled" at or near the satellite center. But there would usually be about 2 or 3 routes that had to be covered by cover drivers who are based out of the primary center. The primary center is approx 67 miles from the satellite center.
During the summer and pre-peak, there would be enough spare package cars that most or all cover drivers would be allowed to use one of them to drive from the main center to the satellite after clocking in and PCM. But all throughout peak and since peak ended, they haven't had any spare package cars. During peak, that was obvious and understandable as we were renting U-hauls to run routes. But since peak ended, we are STILL using U-hauls, due to package cars breaking down and the fact that the center added FIVE new bid routes (which should have been added months ago, but that's another story).
That means that on any given day, 3 or 4 drivers have to drive an hour from the main center to the satellite center and then back again at the end of the day, using their POVs. I don't know about the other two drivers they've been sending (it's been me and 2 other drivers consistently). But it costs me approx $180 a week in gas costs to drive back and forth every day. Granted, part of that is that i drive a 22 year old pickup truck. But it is still no less frustrating to lose a whole day's pay (I'm still getting paid as a first year driver; again another story) every week.
I'm not really asking for anything from you folks. I now as a low seniority cover driver, I have to tolerate being put on routes that I hate and deal with the bottom of the barrel. But I wanted to share and vent my feelings, hoping that it makes me feel better to express it rather than just bottle it up inside. Thanks for listening.
(okay, sorry. Maybe it wasn't all that short )
As a cover driver I've had the "luxury" of covering a fair number of routes. Enough to have a good idea which routes are easier/harder than others. And which routes I would do better/worse at when assigned to them.
One of the "perks" that this center features is a satellite center. At this satellite center, they preload and dispatch approximately 15 routes that are geographically far enough from the main center to justify its existence. They get their packages (except for air) shuttled in from the main center. So the routes typically depart from the satellite center about an hour later than the primary center.
Most of the routes would be run by bid drivers who are "domiciled" at or near the satellite center. But there would usually be about 2 or 3 routes that had to be covered by cover drivers who are based out of the primary center. The primary center is approx 67 miles from the satellite center.
During the summer and pre-peak, there would be enough spare package cars that most or all cover drivers would be allowed to use one of them to drive from the main center to the satellite after clocking in and PCM. But all throughout peak and since peak ended, they haven't had any spare package cars. During peak, that was obvious and understandable as we were renting U-hauls to run routes. But since peak ended, we are STILL using U-hauls, due to package cars breaking down and the fact that the center added FIVE new bid routes (which should have been added months ago, but that's another story).
That means that on any given day, 3 or 4 drivers have to drive an hour from the main center to the satellite center and then back again at the end of the day, using their POVs. I don't know about the other two drivers they've been sending (it's been me and 2 other drivers consistently). But it costs me approx $180 a week in gas costs to drive back and forth every day. Granted, part of that is that i drive a 22 year old pickup truck. But it is still no less frustrating to lose a whole day's pay (I'm still getting paid as a first year driver; again another story) every week.
I'm not really asking for anything from you folks. I now as a low seniority cover driver, I have to tolerate being put on routes that I hate and deal with the bottom of the barrel. But I wanted to share and vent my feelings, hoping that it makes me feel better to express it rather than just bottle it up inside. Thanks for listening.
(okay, sorry. Maybe it wasn't all that short )