Serest,
I don't think anyone is degrading the act of giving to a charity. Most of the contempt we have been discussing surrounds the unbelievably unprofessional manner in which Ups conducts their annual United Way drives.
Jammed down our throats at the last minute every year, it just begins to grate on us. If we gave the charitable UW drive the proper amount of time and attention it may be different. Or if we had the time to show employees the benefits of United Way, it may result in more esprit de corps and benevolence.
Instead we threaten people, not overt threats mind you, but implied ones about promotions and staying off someones "s list" by "just filling out the damn card" We chase people all over the building trying to get them for two minutes to listen to a PCM or watch the video- everybody knows the drill and they just go through the motions.
Maybe if we took an entire day off, center by center, division by division, and spent a day at one of the many wonderful charity events that United Way makes possible, we would have a better appreciation for where our monies go.
Sure it would cost millions but as we have seen argued in this thread isn't that what giving is all about, sacrifice. I would be more than willing to give up a day's pay to spend time at a United Way event. It may result in much more profitable donations from Ups employees who would have a chance to see what United Way does with the money.
As far as not speaking out about the manner in which Ups conducts it's drive and just staying out of it...That won't help change anything.
If you read the policy book, it clearly states that we are in a partnership. We have a responsibility to our organization and each other to be actively involved in all aspects of our business.
If we see a package in trouble, we are bound by duty to act on it. Doesn't matter if you are a pre-loader or Mike Eskew. Same thing goes for the United Way drive. It is a joke and we all know it. Now, we can ignore it, follow along like sheep, fill out the "damn card" and forget about it-or we can meet the issues and our management team head on. We start to take the responsibility that United Parcel Service expects of us in this partnership and try and fix it.
I don't work in the hub, but when I find myself in one I don't like climbing under a belt- in a suit- for a NDA envelope, but that is what partnership is all about, so I do it. I also don't like sitting in a division managers office and telling him in so many words that the UW drive sickens me to the very core of my being and consequently, I refuse to donate through Ups. But that is expected of us also.
You can't pick and choose where you want to participate in the partnership, if something is friend*ed up you have to take a stand, not coast along mum and stay under the radar.
You don't have to be unprofessional, yell, scream or even gesticulate wildly. Be frank, use strong language, level your gaze and wear a serious countenance, and above all expect repercussions. There are always repercussions when you do the right thing, whether you ruin a suit underneath a belt, or lose a promotion to an automaton. At least you will sleep at night.
The only one who suffers by leaving UW the way it is, is those people who would benefit from the United Way donations that would result from a professional, upbeat and informative donation drive. The only way to get such a drive, is to recognize that the current drive is unprofessional, unorganized and demoralizing.
As we discussed earlier, it would entail a great deal of time and money that Ups would need to invest in order to overhaul things. The big question is, is the United Way worth it? I think it is.
If you always do what you have always done-You will always get what you always got.
