How Bad Will Peak Be?

[oldrps]

Still using the contractor model. That is what hasn't changed Today what are you seeing? Box dumping out in the woods and are not isolated events. Hubs and terminals backed up for days if not weeks. Post after post after post of desperate contractor want ads begging for help, Offering pay that has gone up little from what they offered in past years. If you're a contractor you get what you pay for. If you want somebody to come in everyday, take governance over a route and go out there in all kinds of weather on a continuous daily basis and put up the same numbers as what that UPS driver puts up , this is the kind of person that as a contractor you simply cannot survive without. And to procure that type of person you're going to have to be willing to pay the going rate. A rate that is set by what others in the game pay .And they're not going to be treated in the way you think they should be treated..... Like second class citizens working for slave wages.... And here's why. The US birth rate over the past decade was the lowest since 1930 and 2021 was the lowest in the history of the nation. You continue to think that the supply of cheap and abundant labor waiting there to be exploited would never go away.....Well, it is pal.. and faster than you think. But don't worry sooner or later Fat Freddy will have no choice but to give the people over at Ground who are dragging around the motor freight that he stole off the LTL's, standing, stature and pay. He will no longer be able to go on devaluing the tasks they perform in order to please Wall Street and his own bank account..... And as Kellogg and Starbucks have come to discover....he might just ahve to deal with a labor union.

That is correct and the article goes on to disclose what they became. And to think that he got all this for just 2 billion in new shares.

It's not the same contractor model.

I really don't care about the labor pool. Why do you bring this up in a conversation that you started saying nothing has changed with RPS/FedEx Ground since it started? Can you not keep on topic.

Go read the UPS forum, it ain't all peaches and cream over there. They may pay top dollar, but you work your tail off for it and deal with a lot of mind games from supervisors.

Again, you are clueless.

 

[Fred's Myth]

It's not the same contractor model.

I really don't care about the labor pool. Why do you bring this up in a conversation that you started saying nothing has changed with RPS/FedEx Ground since it started? Can you not keep on topic.

Go read the UPS forum, it ain't all peaches and cream over there. They may pay top dollar, but you work your tail off for it and deal with a lot of mind games from supervisors.

Again, you are clueless.

@bacha29's hubris comes from the fact that the Ground Economic Model did not fit his territory, or his temperament. He clamors for the failure of the system to justify and cure his lack of competence, by clinging to a past that is rapidly becoming irrelevant.

 

[bacha29]

It's not the same contractor model.

I really don't care about the labor pool. Why do you bring this up in a conversation that you started saying nothing has changed with RPS/FedEx Ground since it started? Can you not keep on topic.

Go read the UPS forum, it ain't all peaches and cream over there. They may pay top dollar, but you work your tail off for it and deal with a lot of mind games from supervisors.

Again, you are clueless.

You're speaking from the standpoint of a manager. I'm speaking from the standpoint of a contractor/driver. And to this day there isn't much being paid in by multi route contractors for contractor employed drivers in terms of a retirement/disability plan . The inescapable reality is that the job is joint killer and it's shameful that contractors who expect people to go out there everyday and protect and defend the economic interests of the contractor and the corporation are not backstopping those people with a similar retirement/ disability plan that the contractor and FDX corporate people enjoy.
So for the person who is out there dragging Fat Freddy's junk around will do so only to the point where they are no longer physically able to do so then will simply be disposed of and tossed back out into the economy to survive on their own in a physical condition no employer outside of perhaps maybe Goodwill willing to hire them. And that is one thing about RPS/FXG that has changed very little if at all.
There are a fortunate few however who see the physical beating they're in for redouble their efforts to get to a better place.

 

[DriveInDriveOut]

The inescapable reality is that the job is joint killer and it's shameful that contractors who expect people to go out there everyday and protect and defend the economic interests of the contractor and the corporation are not backstopping those people with a similar retirement/ disability plan that the contractor and FDX corporate people enjoy.

You know you can buy disability insurance on your own right?

 

[bacha29]

You know you can buy disability insurance on your own right?

Of all your dumb responses this one takes the cake. The question is: why should contractor employed drivers not be afforded the same employer funded protection as a condition of employment?...The answer?.....Corporate greed. Then again, instead of employing professional front line service providers if Fat Freddy thinks that drifters and professional job hoppers will suffice...that's fine....Just as long as he never forgets that you get what you pay for and not a thing more.

 

[DriveInDriveOut]

The question is: why should contractor employed drivers not be afforded the same employer funded protection as a condition of employment?.

Of all your dumb responses this one takes the cake. They're contractors not FedEx employees. Put down the glass of Pinot little lady, you've had too much.

 

[oldrps]

You're speaking from the standpoint of a manager. I'm speaking from the standpoint of a contractor/driver. And to this day there isn't much being paid in by multi route contractors for contractor employed drivers in terms of a retirement/disability plan . The inescapable reality is that the job is joint killer and it's shameful that contractors who expect people to go out there everyday and protect and defend the economic interests of the contractor and the corporation are not backstopping those people with a similar retirement/ disability plan that the contractor and FDX corporate people enjoy.
So for the person who is out there dragging Fat Freddy's junk around will do so only to the point where they are no longer physically able to do so then will simply be disposed of and tossed back out into the economy to survive on their own in a physical condition no employer outside of perhaps maybe Goodwill willing to hire them. And that is one thing about RPS/FXG that has changed very little if at all.
There are a fortunate few however who see the physical beating they're in for redouble their efforts to get to a better place.

I am not talking from a standpoint of a manager. I am talking from a standpoint of someone who is no longer a part of FedEx and couldn't care what their contractors or FedEx pays. You are no longer a contractor for FedEx so you can't speak from that standpoint.

If you care so much for these drivers, take some action and do something about it, otherwise quit discussing it here. Either put up or shut up. I think everyone on this forum is tired of your rehashing the same topics every few weeks. You add nothing to this forum.

 

[falcon back]

I am not talking from a standpoint of a manager. I am talking from a standpoint of someone who is no longer a part of FedEx and couldn't care what their contractors or FedEx pays. You are no longer a contractor for FedEx so you can't speak from that standpoint.

If you care so much for these drivers, take some action and do something about it, otherwise quit discussing it here. Either put up or shut up. I think everyone on this forum is tired of your rehashing the same topics every few weeks. You add nothing to this forum.

Bacha is a source of constant entertainment and information. He is a definite authority on financial matters, social programs, the Ground network, America's foreign policy, religion, politics, anything and everything else.

 

[bacha29]

I am not talking from a standpoint of a manager. I am talking from a standpoint of someone who is no longer a part of FedEx and couldn't care what their contractors or FedEx pays. You are no longer a contractor for FedEx so you can't speak from that standpoint.

If you care so much for these drivers, take some action and do something about it, otherwise quit discussing it here. Either put up or shut up. I think everyone on this forum is tired of your rehashing the same topics every few weeks. You add nothing to this forum.

If they add nothing then why do you keep on reading them? At the same time you always take managements side making what you say the same old thing as well. In your eyes they can do no wrong and as a result you get angry when somebody pulls back the curtain exposes it's ulterior motives and in doing so discolors your nice dreams about the time you spent there.

 

[falcon back]

You know you can buy disability insurance on your own right?

I tried to buy short term on the open market when I went part time. The premiums were too high and the payouts were too low. I decided to escrow the money I would have used for premiums and save it in case I needed it. Luckily I didn't need it so I had it to spend when I retired.

 

[DriveInDriveOut]

I tried to buy short term on the open market when I went part time. The premiums were too high and the payouts were too low. I decided to escrow the money I would have used for premiums and save it in case I needed it. Luckily I didn't need it so I had it to spend when I retired.

Ya short term sucks, and if you're financially responsible it's not even necessary.

Everyone should have long term though.

 

[Working4the1%]

Peak will continue into 2022 at my station …

 

[Nolimitz]

it's fing over. going back to 4-10's possibly 3-10 pre outta here

 

[Basement Dweller]

Peak was suprisenly mild this year, and I don't just mean the weather. Response was actually good for something. We didn't have any dreaded 5 AM to 7 PM sorts. A lot less temps and more actual employees in the door. Helps that they were actually paid $23 a hour vs. last year's $15. Bonus pay is probably going to drop after the new year and we're back to covid lockdown volume at 50% or less staffing. Every body that drops dead from Covid is money in Fat Freddie's pocket.

 

[oldrps]

If they add nothing then why do you keep on reading them? At the same time you always take managements side making what you say the same old thing as well. In your eyes they can do no wrong and as a result you get angry when somebody pulls back the curtain exposes it's ulterior motives and in doing so discolors your nice dreams about the time you spent there.

I only reply when you make misleading statements to set the record straight. You started this discussion saying that RPS/Ground has not changed since it started. I responded that it has. Are you saying that it is a management side saying that it has changed?

I am still waiting for you to pull the curtains back and show "ulterior motives". Do you mean by "ulterior motives" that FedEx is using contractors to pay less and avoid unionization. I think everyone knows that. If FedEx did "ulterior motives" or illegal actions over the 20+ years you were contracted with them, did you consult with a lawyer or report them to the proper authorities?

 

[HedleyLamarr]

There were a few rough days and working 20 days straight sucked, but peak was certainly easier this year than last year. At least for Express it was. Ground will still be delivering Christmas presents well into January here

 

[McFeely]

There were a few rough days and working 20 days straight sucked

Ouch! Even our non-DOT drivers only worked 6 days/week. 20 straight days is torture, no matter the job.

Peak at my station was the 2nd worst peak I've had in my entire time at Express, but that's due to our staffing levels. If the company could attract ($) and retain ($) employees, we would have had a very smooth peak. Also, getting Wave 2 freight at 1400-1500 each day severely friend's things up for many routes. I don't know how we have any customers after this Response crap. I know we've lost a few larger shippers at my station as a result.

 

[Artee]

Peak was suprisenly mild this year, and I don't just mean the weather. Response was actually good for something. We didn't have any dreaded 5 AM to 7 PM sorts. A lot less temps and more actual employees in the door. Helps that they were actually paid $23 a hour vs. last year's $15. Bonus pay is probably going to drop after the new year and we're back to covid lockdown volume at 50% or less staffing. Every body that drops dead from Covid is money in Fat Freddie's pocket.

Our peak was pretty manageable. If it was not for temps, especially at the ramp it would have been a crap show. Was told yesterday that the surge pay we have been receiving the last few months will be continued after Jan 1st.

 

[Star B]

Wow, it was the complete opposite over here.

Went pretty damn smooth, one of the easiest peaks ever. No response at our station. We only went 6 days a week for two weeks, if you consider that today would have been a normal day for me. Friday we collapsed routes and only had one helper per loop. No temps and we had a ton of retirements in the weeks prior. Maybe everyone ordered everything ground?

 

[vantexan]

I ran a golf cart route for UPS here in Florida. Rainy day last Tuesday, got a bad cold. Other than that best job I've ever had. Supposed to run three more weeks.