Fed Ex Media Campaign - Gloves coming off

[mungrin]

FedEx must go down!!! Im so sick of seeing Fedex on the forbes top comanies to work for and most admired companies etc blah blah.We all know UPS is better and the only reason Fedex makes those lists is because Fred pays to get on it.Everyone knows that.
We are a better and bigger company,no more mr nice guy,time to crush Fedex!!!

 

[Jack_Burton]

the Express part of their business, for years, has been FedEx's least profitable operating unit

This is false. The Express division had an Operating income of $426 million and a Revenue of $6.37 billion for FY08. The Ground division Operating income was $203 million with a Revenue of $1.72 billion. The Express division has always been the leading division of FedEx Corp.

Remember if it wasn't for their Express there wouldn't be any other FedEx divisions. Let alone the loss leaders that are the Kinko's (Office) and Freight divisions. Fred has been using the profit from the Express division to expand his empire for years. He's been able to do this off the blood and sweat of his Express division workers. Between the misclassification under the RLA and the Ground "contractors" it has allowed FedEx to gain ground market share and expand into all kinds of different endeavours.

They spend almost twice and much as UPS in yearly lobbying efforts (9 million last year). There top five all have higher salaries than the UPSs top five. The company has lots of redundant management and other pork salaried positions. Don't forget about all the sports they sponsor and are involved with. FedEx Cup, FedEx Orange Bowl, Nascar, etc...

Express drivers no longer have a pension. It would take 15+ years to top out on the current pay scale. Once topped out the average Express driver will be making $8.00 less an hour. Not to mention the increases in insurance cost, etc...

Could they afford to give them UPS pay and benefits? Probably with some trimming of the fat. I'm willing to bet Express drivers would settle for less than UPS pay and benefits, but that could possibly hurt future contract negotiations.

Should be interesting to say the least.

 

[MrFedEx]

Hmmm, will this post make the blog?


"John says:
Your comment is awaiting moderation.

Great site.

Fed-Ex is the best company to work for. No one wants to be strong-armed into joining a union. We already have top pay, great work conditions, amazingly amazing management and easily the best benefits package around. our families are covered 100%, our 401k plan is second to none, and the pensions are robust! Us drivers will all retire as millionaires and reap the benefits of a non-union atmopsphere due to the caring, sharing and giving Fed-Ex corporate scheme.

There is nothing to gain by joining a union. Fed-ex is easily the best company to work for there ever has been.

I hope the brown bailout goes down in flames."

"John" sounds like a manager writing exactly what FedEx wants to see. There is no pension plan at all, the 401k match is currently discontinued, and our benefits suck. "Amazingly amazing management"??? How about amazingly bad, amazingly cheap, amazingly unaware of worker discontent, and amazingly incredibly inept at doing anything but parroting idiotic corporate policies on everything from coffee cups to copy paper.

Here's an example. Right now, a request to have a uniform item replaced has to go through 4 levels of management to get approved. Let's say Fido tears your pants on a residential delivery and you need a new pair. Your ops manager submits to his senior manager, who submits to the managing director, who submits to the VP of the division....all for an effing pair of $10 pants. How incredibly stupid, anal, and worthless. Just like FedEx. Oh yeah, you have to turn-in the pants with the dog bite to show proof. Perhaps they need a DNA sample from both you and the dog as well. And people wonder why I get frustrated with these morons.

 

[pretzel_man]

P-man, do you agree with the course of action that UPS has decided to take or do you think that we need to be more aggressive and play hard ball with Fred?

Upstate:

I trust Scott Davis. This is going to come down to what 100 sentators do He says he is going to focus on responding to them rather than to the public.

What I'm hoping he is doing is letting the Teamsters do the talking. Personally, I think that is a smart move. If he lets the Teamsters respond, this becomes NOT a discussion between two companies, but instead a discussion between a company and labor.

I think that makes FedEx look much worse. It makes them look like they are trying to keep their people down, instead of fighting against a larger company.

I think time will tell.

P-Man

 

[tellitstraight]

Upstate:

I trust Scott Davis. This is going to come down to what 100 sentators do He says he is going to focus on responding to them rather than to the public.

What I'm hoping he is doing is letting the Teamsters do the talking. Personally, I think that is a smart move. If he lets the Teamsters respond, this becomes NOT a discussion between two companies, but instead a discussion between a company and labor.

I think that makes FedEx look much worse. It makes them look like they are trying to keep their people down, instead of fighting against a larger company.

I think time will tell.

P-Man

Reluctantly I have to agree with P-man. At first I wanted UPS to wage an all our media war but it does appear that most of the coverage is anti-FedEx. In one week the best they could do was post 2 "positive" news stories one was an editorial and the other an opinion piece. Hopefully Scotts plan works and while FedEx is whining and complaining we can steal back OUR customers.

 

[satellitedriver]

Just curious, do you think the metro commercial UPS driver should make 30-40% more than the rural/residential UPS driver?
No, the ass pounding on back roads in an old P5, non power steering, bench seat(meaning 1inch of foam over a plywood based pedestal seat with 800,000 miles on it makes up the difference between packages and miles.
The reason I ask is that the primary differences between a UPS route and a FedEx Express route is Stop Density, Packages per Stop and Weight per Package.
Wrong, and at the same time, Right. The debate is between fedex pay/per production and Ups pay per/production. Based on ratio of actual production, they make more than we do.
In my case, there are 3 Fedex drivers covering the same area.
Between the 3 Fedex drivers, I deliver more pkgs and deliver more stops than any of them combined,not to mention that two of them are in a/c, powered steering vans.
So, back to my basic premise.
I make $29/hr driving one beat up old pkg car.
3 Fedex drivers make $15/hr.(just a guess on my part) to cover the same area and volume.
Simple math.
Fedex= $45/hr(plus bennies) and the cost of running 3 trucks.
UPS= $29/hr(plus bennies) and the cost of running one POS P5 pkg car.


These are the same primary differences between a UPS metro commercial route and a UPS rural/residential route.
I can only address the rural aspect, as I have, but, I doubt that the business model is that different in the metro/commercial ares.

 

[mungrin]

Not to mention the FedEx guy in my area is always talking to chics and hanging out.Arent they suppose to be in a rush??? ***?? Thier service must really suck! And yes im driving an old beater in 100 degree heat while the Fedex guy is in his A/C controled Hybrid.Am I the only one who sees something wrong with this?How are these guys still in business???

 

[Catatonic]

Originally Posted by Hoaxster
Just curious, do you think the metro commercial UPS driver should make 30-40% more than the rural/residential UPS driver?
No, the ass pounding on back roads in an old P5, non power steering, bench seat(meaning 1inch of foam over a plywood based pedestal seat with 800,000 miles on it makes up the difference between packages and miles.
The reason I ask is that the primary differences between a UPS route and a FedEx Express route is Stop Density, Packages per Stop and Weight per Package.
Wrong, and at the same time, Right. The debate is between fedex pay/per production and Ups pay per/production. Based on ratio of actual production, they make more than we do.
In my case, there are 3 Fedex drivers covering the same area.
Between the 3 Fedex drivers, I deliver more pkgs and deliver more stops than any of them combined,not to mention that two of them are in a/c, powered steering vans.
So, back to my basic premise.
I make $29/hr driving one beat up old pkg car.
3 Fedex drivers make $15/hr.(just a guess on my part) to cover the same area and volume.
Simple math.
Fedex= $45/hr(plus bennies) and the cost of running 3 trucks.
UPS= $29/hr(plus bennies) and the cost of running one POS P5 pkg car.

These are the same primary differences between a UPS metro commercial route and a UPS rural/residential route.
I can only address the rural aspect, as I have, but, I doubt that the business model is that different in the metro/commercial ares.

It seems we are looking at this from parallel but different points of view.
If I may presume, it appears you are looking at how hard a person works or is inconvenienced as to what they should get paid. Based on that POV a ditch digger using a shovel should be paid more than the operator of a backhoe.
I am simply looking at how productive and profitable one route is versus another (regardless of company).
Customers pay by the package and profitability to the carrier is based on
1) Stop Density or Miles per Stop - The distance between stops on route and to-from mileage
2) Packages per Stop - more packages per stop equals greater profitability
3) Weight per Package - higher the weight the more profitable

FedEx drivers are less profitable in all of the above. Their miles per stop is less, their packages per stop are less and the weight per package is less.

Your route may be an anomaly (1 UPS driver to 3 FedEx drivers) since there are more UPS delivery drivers in the US than FedEx Express drivers but your example actually supports my POV as well as yours.

 

[Dagoof]

The FDEX Driver on my route makes 23 an hour he has been there 7 or 8 years.

 

[mungrin]

The FDEX Driver on my route makes 23 an hour he has been there 7 or 8 years.

LOL thats pathetic.Hes getting ripped off!!

 

[satellitedriver]

It seems we are looking at this from parallel but different points of view.
If I may presume, it appears you are looking at how hard a person works or is inconvenienced as to what they should get paid. Based on that POV a ditch digger using a shovel should be paid more than the operator of a backhoe.
I am simply looking at how productive and profitable one route is versus another (regardless of company).
Customers pay by the package and profitability to the carrier is based on
1) Stop Density or Miles per Stop - The distance between stops on route and to-from mileage
2) Packages per Stop - more packages per stop equals greater profitability
3) Weight per Package - higher the weight the more profitable

FedEx drivers are less profitable in all of the above. Their miles per stop is less, their packages per stop are less and the weight per package is less.

Your route may be an anomaly (1 UPS driver to 3 FedEx drivers) since there are more UPS delivery drivers in the US than FedEx Express drivers but your example actually supports my POV as well as yours.

My route maybe an anomaly, large area, very rural.
In fact, there are 4 FedEx drivers on my route. One goes home for 2hrs, on the clock, before he can leave his area, in case of late call in pickups.

This discussion has gone tangential.
I responded to this post;

[Quote:
Originally Posted by MrFedEx
What I have said (repeatedly) is that what you do isn't worth 30-40% more in wages and benefits than what I do. Quote:]

I stand by my premise.
Even if the same route is run one for one (UPS vs FedEx), the UPS driver will produced more actual production than the FedEx driver in that area, over the same time frame.
So, we are paid more because we do more.

 

[mungrin]

So, we are paid more because we do more.

Amen to that.I would be extremly pissed if they got what we got with the joke of job they have.The guy in my area does around 30 stops a day.Mostly 1 envelope per stop,and doesnt even have a handtruck.He never seams to be in a rush either.No wonder they are going out of business.

 

[Catatonic]

So, we are paid more because we do more.

Exactly!

You are more productive and profitable than the FedEx driver(s).

 

[ups1990]

Exactly!

You are more productive and profitable than the FedEx driver(s).

According to UPS, this is exactly why they have to cut routes. They like to drive this point home, we make too much.

 

[FedEX 4 Life]

Amen to that.I would be extremly pissed if they got what we got with the joke of job they have.The guy in my area does around 30 stops a day.Mostly 1 envelope per stop,and doesnt even have a handtruck.He never seams to be in a rush either.No wonder they are going out of business.

Yeah your job is so great that you guys are depressed and commiting suicide?Yeah you guys make more than I do but guess what,I have ZERO stress.I wake up and I look forward to going to work because my job is fun and easy.I know if that union comes in then everything will change.

 

[UnconTROLLed]

Yeah your job is so great that you guys are depressed and commiting suicide?Yeah you guys make more than I do but guess what,I have ZERO stress.I wake up and I look forward to going to work because my job is fun and easy.I know if that union comes in then everything will change.

Great for you but what about the 200 whatever thousand other FedEx employees? Ever thought about them?

And I have a fun and easy INSIDE job and make more than you do, only 8 years in with the company. Better benes, pension, etc.

Maybe you don't need it but how about thinking about someone other than yourself?

 

[FedEX 4 Life]

And I have a fun and easy INSIDE job and make more than you do, only 8 years in with the company. Better benes, pension, etc.

How do you know that you have better benefits and pension than i do?Can you transfer to other UPS stations around the country?Can you ship stuff for 75% off?Fly for free?Hmmm...

 

[UnconTROLLed]

How do you know that you have better benefits and pension than i do?Can you transfer to other UPS stations around the country?Can you ship stuff for 75% off?Fly for free?Hmmm...

I can transfer between 5 buildings in my region. I do not care about the discount nonsense, but I get 22% off of my cell phone bill monthly as do most UPS'ers and other fine discounts that I won't go into ( because that is not important)

It is widely known what fedex has been up to regarding pensions. Must I remind you of the whole PPA disaster in 2003? Or are you so self-serving you forgot about the new hires?

Benefits? I would say that UPS'ers have it pretty much as good as it gets concerning that. If you have better, fine, but show me what I'm missing.

I pay 66/mo for my health/dental etc. How about you?

 

[pretzel_man]

How do you know that you have better benefits and pension than i do?Can you transfer to other UPS stations around the country?Can you ship stuff for 75% off?Fly for free?Hmmm...

This is all the more reason that FedEx should not be concerned about the FAA bill.

As you and FedEx press releases have said... You are paid great, have great benefits, and are happy.

There is no reason to believe you or other employees would ever want to join the union.

I'm with you. I don't understand what Fred is afraid of.

P-Man

 

[FedEX 4 Life]

I can transfer between 5 buildings in my region. I do not care about the discount nonsense, but I get 22% off of my cell phone bill monthly as do most UPS'ers and other fine discounts that I won't go into ( because that is not important)

It is widely known what fedex has been up to regarding pensions. Must I remind you of the whole PPA disaster in 2003? Or are you so self-serving you forgot about the new hires?

Benefits? What we have are basically the best aroudn. For that reason I could care less what FedEx offers.

Every UPS guy i know has ghetto benefits compared to mine so i dont know what you are talking about.They see the same doctors that the Medicaid people in the projects do.UPS pensions are broke because of the Teamsters,it is a widely known fact.

UPS had to cough up $6 billion of its profits to bail out the Teamsters Central State Pension Plan, a plan that the corrupt union leadership mismanaged, stole from, and spent into insolvency. All those wonderful dues paid by members down the ole blowhole - as for working hard, the Teamsters leadership had to work HARD to waste its members’ money in such a spectacular way.