Home
Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
Latest activity
Members
Current visitors
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Home
Forums
The Competition
FedEx Discussions
Ground Contractor Issues Relating to Express
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Ricochet1a" data-source="post: 547109" data-attributes="member: 22880"><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">This is the aim of “dispassionate” debate, to have each side present their best argument and let the “audience” decide. I may disagree with a lot of people on things, but I want to give them the opportunity to present their viewpoint without the threat of an <em>ad hominem</em> personal attack being launched. I presented an argument that was as short as I possibly could present it, and would like bbsam to respond to the specific points I raised. I obviously asked those questions since the answers I anticipate would support my position, and provide the reader to this forum additional insight as to the practices and conditions within FedEx. I think the reader to my posts has figured out my approach by now; feed out the rope and let who I’m debating create their own “mishap”. Having a multiple vehicle contactor state their position, and give specifics regarding how they compensate their “helpers” will give the Express employee (and the UPS employee) an idea of what they are up against. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 12px"><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'">Now, regarding the “surface level” characterization of my arguments… I take no offense to that. I deliberately want to avoid getting into minutia that would cause the glazed eyes of the reader to have their eyes completely roll back. I deliberately attempt to keep the focus on the “big picture”, so that the reader can make an evaluation of the situation without having to take courses in business law, contract law or business ethics. Target the message to the audience, and one will succeed in getting their point across. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">I’d also like to keep the debate focused on the treatment of the employees of FedEx (and misclassified employees of Ground), and off of politics. An overwhelming majority of my income is through capital gains, not earned income (call me a capitalist). I’ve worked part-time while slowly working on an advanced degree to maintain insurance, have some earned income and continuity of “employed status”. Years ago when I first started with FedEx, I was thinking that it may be a place I’d like to start a second career. My research into FedEx unfortunately consisted of material that was relevant to the FedEx of the 1980’s and 90’s. I knew within a year of starting FedEx that the company that I had so carefully “researched” wasn’t the company I was working for at the time. The past 18 months things have gotten worse on what I’d describe as an exponential scale. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">What FedEx has done to its employees in the past 18 months can only be described as pure opportunistic greed, no other explanation exists. The pension plan was pulled BEFORE the economy went into recession, not after. The 401(k) matching funds were withheld with full knowledge that the pension plan had been gutted just months before. The pay freeze was done while FedEx continued to preach the People, Service, Profit motto to its employees. The puzzling thing to me is why did FedEx, after knowing a “hostile” administration was about to enter office, decide to nearly simultaneously freeze pay and 401(k) matching funds, when they knew the threat of having their RLA exemption pulled was real? FedEx’s actions now can only be described as I stated earlier, paranoia. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">Capitalism goes hand in hand with good labor practices. Companies that have provided consistent quality to their customers, and treat their employees with respect and dignity almost always do well in the market place. Companies that take an insular view of operations and run the enterprise off the spreadsheet instead off the “operations floor”, tend to suffer in the market place. That company I researched a few years ago could’ve been categorized as a “theory Y” company (this is for the sake of bbsam). Now it is solidly in the “theory X” category, and moving towards the “gulag” category each month. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">As that capitalist, I had an opportunity to make some stock purchases in early March when everyone it seemed panicked over the future of the country (always buy on the bottoms). Both FedEx (FDX) and Ford (friend) were looking really good. I couldn’t purchase FDX stock in good conscience, since I know how they operate. But I did purchase 50,000 shares of Ford (one of those “bad” union dominated American companies). I recently took profits on those 50,000 shares. It seems that a company that has a union working in partnership with management to produce a product can be a good buy. </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'"><span style="font-size: 12px">We’ve all read the FedEx lore of how single employees, when faced with a near impossible situation, thought “outside the box” and provided that “outstanding customer experience”. If those same situations were to be encountered today, the employee would be hamstrung by the need to maintain goal, and would be left giving the 1-800 number for the customer to call (along with a bit of good luck if they actually get through to someone who knew what they were doing). </span></span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family: 'Calibri'">Part of “good capitalism” is providing a standard of living for the employees of that company that allows them to live a soild middle class lifestyle. FedEx used to be one of those companies for its employees. Now, it provides a lower middle class lifestyle for its full time employees, and is quickly moving down. This is an unfortunate side effect of today’s business ethos. Employees shouldn’t be left with the false options of having to put up with constantly eroding standards of living or quitting. Employees have an opportunity to make their voices heard, through a union and collective bargaining. It isn’t socialism to bargain collectively with one’s employer, it is almost uniquely…… American.</span></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ricochet1a, post: 547109, member: 22880"] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]This is the aim of “dispassionate” debate, to have each side present their best argument and let the “audience” decide. I may disagree with a lot of people on things, but I want to give them the opportunity to present their viewpoint without the threat of an [I]ad hominem[/I] personal attack being launched. I presented an argument that was as short as I possibly could present it, and would like bbsam to respond to the specific points I raised. I obviously asked those questions since the answers I anticipate would support my position, and provide the reader to this forum additional insight as to the practices and conditions within FedEx. I think the reader to my posts has figured out my approach by now; feed out the rope and let who I’m debating create their own “mishap”. Having a multiple vehicle contactor state their position, and give specifics regarding how they compensate their “helpers” will give the Express employee (and the UPS employee) an idea of what they are up against. [/SIZE][/FONT] [SIZE=3][FONT=Calibri]Now, regarding the “surface level” characterization of my arguments… I take no offense to that. I deliberately want to avoid getting into minutia that would cause the glazed eyes of the reader to have their eyes completely roll back. I deliberately attempt to keep the focus on the “big picture”, so that the reader can make an evaluation of the situation without having to take courses in business law, contract law or business ethics. Target the message to the audience, and one will succeed in getting their point across. [/FONT][/SIZE] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]I’d also like to keep the debate focused on the treatment of the employees of FedEx (and misclassified employees of Ground), and off of politics. An overwhelming majority of my income is through capital gains, not earned income (call me a capitalist). I’ve worked part-time while slowly working on an advanced degree to maintain insurance, have some earned income and continuity of “employed status”. Years ago when I first started with FedEx, I was thinking that it may be a place I’d like to start a second career. My research into FedEx unfortunately consisted of material that was relevant to the FedEx of the 1980’s and 90’s. I knew within a year of starting FedEx that the company that I had so carefully “researched” wasn’t the company I was working for at the time. The past 18 months things have gotten worse on what I’d describe as an exponential scale. [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]What FedEx has done to its employees in the past 18 months can only be described as pure opportunistic greed, no other explanation exists. The pension plan was pulled BEFORE the economy went into recession, not after. The 401(k) matching funds were withheld with full knowledge that the pension plan had been gutted just months before. The pay freeze was done while FedEx continued to preach the People, Service, Profit motto to its employees. The puzzling thing to me is why did FedEx, after knowing a “hostile” administration was about to enter office, decide to nearly simultaneously freeze pay and 401(k) matching funds, when they knew the threat of having their RLA exemption pulled was real? FedEx’s actions now can only be described as I stated earlier, paranoia. [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]Capitalism goes hand in hand with good labor practices. Companies that have provided consistent quality to their customers, and treat their employees with respect and dignity almost always do well in the market place. Companies that take an insular view of operations and run the enterprise off the spreadsheet instead off the “operations floor”, tend to suffer in the market place. That company I researched a few years ago could’ve been categorized as a “theory Y” company (this is for the sake of bbsam). Now it is solidly in the “theory X” category, and moving towards the “gulag” category each month. [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]As that capitalist, I had an opportunity to make some stock purchases in early March when everyone it seemed panicked over the future of the country (always buy on the bottoms). Both FedEx (FDX) and Ford (friend) were looking really good. I couldn’t purchase FDX stock in good conscience, since I know how they operate. But I did purchase 50,000 shares of Ford (one of those “bad” union dominated American companies). I recently took profits on those 50,000 shares. It seems that a company that has a union working in partnership with management to produce a product can be a good buy. [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Calibri][SIZE=3]We’ve all read the FedEx lore of how single employees, when faced with a near impossible situation, thought “outside the box” and provided that “outstanding customer experience”. If those same situations were to be encountered today, the employee would be hamstrung by the need to maintain goal, and would be left giving the 1-800 number for the customer to call (along with a bit of good luck if they actually get through to someone who knew what they were doing). [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Calibri]Part of “good capitalism” is providing a standard of living for the employees of that company that allows them to live a soild middle class lifestyle. FedEx used to be one of those companies for its employees. Now, it provides a lower middle class lifestyle for its full time employees, and is quickly moving down. This is an unfortunate side effect of today’s business ethos. Employees shouldn’t be left with the false options of having to put up with constantly eroding standards of living or quitting. Employees have an opportunity to make their voices heard, through a union and collective bargaining. It isn’t socialism to bargain collectively with one’s employer, it is almost uniquely…… American.[/FONT] [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Home
Forums
The Competition
FedEx Discussions
Ground Contractor Issues Relating to Express
Top