As a former supervisor with fedex ground, I know alot of the supplementals (drivers who work for a contractor but do not own the route) are hopeful for unionization. They generally work very long hours, and some, average about 11 dollars per hour when you work out how many hours they put in. They also in many cases do not receive benefits, as they are responsible for this at their own expense. Many contractors treat their supplemental drivers very well, paying them bonuses and providing some sort of insurance, but for as many as there are that fit this category, there are many who don't. There was one contractor in the terminal I worked in who went through a different driver about once every month to two months. As for tyhe contractors, many of them want nothing to do with the union, especially those contractors who own more than one route. It will be interesting to see how fedex ground will handle this situation, particularely when they start to play contactors against their supplemental drivers. From what I have seen, mostly through intra-company emails, is that supervisors and management must promote the independent contractor model whenever possible, and this has come with a proliferation of anti-union literature and posters appearing in the terminals. This vote in Mass, and the coming struggle with unionizing ground, will provide for a very interesting case study.
