ISP concerns and questions...

[bbsam]

You seem very pissed off lately Bbsam. I have never talked with a contractor that made much money, it seems you aren't either anymore. I run into many ground drivers recently that all they ask is "how do I get on at Express." The word is out man.

I still talk to my drivers who left for Express. Not exactly the greener pasture your HR painted for them.

 

[Cactus]

Sucks to be you, huh?

I have a wife and three kids. No. It's great to be me.

No, no, no. I'm talking about your work life, not your domestic life.

 

[Cactus]

I still talk to my drivers who left for Express. Not exactly the greener pasture your HR painted for them.

Imagine that.

Express is hardly a dream job, a nightmare yes. Ground more of the same only crappier pay and less professionalism.

 

[bbsam]

No, no, no. I'm talking about your work life, not your domestic life.

I've had worse.

 

[bbsam]

Imagine that.

Express is hardly a dream job, a nightmare yes. Ground more of the same only crappier pay and less professionalism.

Maybe where you are.

 

[soc151]

The prevailing attitude seems to be: It's your contract, fedex, and until you make it worth doing anything but the bare minimum, that's all you are going to get.

I think it's poetic.

 

[overflowed]

The prevailing attitude seems to be: It's your contract, fedex, and until you make it worth doing anything but the bare minimum, that's all you are going to get.

I think it's poetic.

See, even the ground contractors are being wad.

 

[soc151]

Well the contractors aren't running a charity. If there is no profit incentive to do more, what's the point?

 

[overflowed]

That there is WAD my friend. Do what is asked and nothing more. We aren't working for charity either.

 

[overflowed]

I still talk to my drivers who left for Express. Not exactly the greener pasture your HR painted for them.

I could have told them that, but greener none the less. Maybe not as green as HR would like them to believe. FYI Express managers target ground applicants during hiring sprees. Less training. I am always asked by ground drivers how to get on at Express now. Before, they all thought it was all the same scam and asked if any Express routes for sale. I do think the ground drivers are talking though. Word spreads.

 

[Cactus]

Maybe where you are.

Show me where in this country there's a Ground contractor that pays higher wages than Express.

Don't even get me started on Ground's lack of professionalism.

 

[Garciawork]

Show me where in this country there's a Ground contractor that pays higher wages than Express.

Don't even get me started on Ground's lack of professionalism.

He didn't say Express pays better.

I can say, however, that the one driver I had leave for Express wants to come back, because though the hourly wage was higher, they didn't get the same hours so they made far less. Also, my drivers are professional, I make sure of it. I can't speak to the local Express terminal's professionalism, but I don't see it being higher than my drivers.
I can also say that my drivers make double the local per capita income of the region at our starting pay, so FWIW, the pay ain't bad when compared to their other options. That may explain why most of my drivers have been around for years.

 

[bbsam]

I could have told them that, but greener none the less. Maybe not as green as HR would like them to believe. FYI Express managers target ground applicants during hiring sprees. Less training. I am always asked by ground drivers how to get on at Express now. Before, they all thought it was all the same scam and asked if any Express routes for sale. I do think the ground drivers are talking though. Word spreads.

Greener...but the manure is so deep I get the feeling it may not be worth it.

 

[Cactus]

He didn't say Express pays better.

 

[Route 66]

Easy now - he most likely received "unsatisfactories" in reading comprehension.

 

[Adao501]

Ok. I have searched high and low on this board and the overall internet. It seems like this ISP is some secret society and till your in it, info is sparse (except in my ground.biz which makes it seem like lackeys are lining up to sign up)

Our meeting with the Fedex minions was announced its going to be next month to discuss the changes with all the IC's and BC's.

I want more information from REAL CONTRACTORS the ins and outs. I can be PM'd if need be. Our entire terminal is tired of the same old BS where we are getting squeezed by the propaganda machine. I can predict now that they are going to try and convince us how beneficial and good this ISP model is knowing full well that without representation (contractors), we most likely are going to get friend* again. If we ever needed an uprising its more so now than ever!!!!!

That being said, I know we have to be to scale. I get that 500 stops per day min.

1. Is that 500 stops per day include supplements or only PSA's
2. Because our terminal split up areas, does it have to be within the same terminal for scale?
3. What happens to the area that we already have, can someone else bid and take it away?
4. We DO NOT want to combine our area with HD, do we have to take a certain zip code and service that whole area even if it means doing HD as well?
5. What negotiations ( if thats even possible) can we negotiate. Benefits? Vacation?
6. What happens to contractors that have paid a pretty penny for their routes? Are they just swallowed up by the lowest bidder?
7. What are our benefits? Is there anything positive with the conversion or is it all 1 sided?
8. For those that did have to bid for a zip code or area that you already owned, did someone else try and bid for your existing area to steal from you?



What pertinant questions should the Minion be asked in this meeting to expose the real jist so others don't fall for the "smoke and mirrors" chirade? Most of the contractors honestly at our terminal are not the most intelligent people, LOL, and English is NOT their first language.

I am looking for the good, bad and ugly in this model. I want to be prepared and not walk into something with my pants down so to speak. Trying to gather as much information as possible.

And please, lets have some decent dialogue. Theres enough negativity already. I want the skinny on the pro's and con's. I don't wanna hear, "yeah, your friend'd. I already know that.

If those that are already on the ISP model wish to PM me rather than post publicly, do so, I will gladly give my cell number or email address to discuss further. We are trying to educate ourselves before we have something jammed down our gizzards.

Thanks for reading.
GS

Hello,

I`m new here and I see that this post is a little old, but I`ve been reading a lot about the ISP transition and got to no conclusion. Besides that it`s something unknown. Probably you have already passed through that and could give some tips about it. Our terminal is schedule just for 2019, but I`d like to get prepared way before that. Some sellers say that its gonna be much better, that you`re gonna make more money than today, but I don't know if it`s really true or not. I see that the routes sale prices increased after ISP, but still not sure why...
Can someone help me with that?
Thanks!

 

[burrheadd]

He didn't say Express pays better.

I can say, however, that the one driver I had leave for Express wants to come back, because though the hourly wage was higher, they didn't get the same hours so they made far less. Also, my drivers are professional, I make sure of it. I can't speak to the local Express terminal's professionalism, but I don't see it being higher than my drivers.
I can also say that my drivers make double the local per capita income of the region at our starting pay, so FWIW, the pay ain't bad when compared to their other options. That may explain why most of my drivers have been around for years.

Are you in Juarez or Tijuana?

 

[dmac1]

Hello,

I`m new here and I see that this post is a little old, but I`ve been reading a lot about the ISP transition and got to no conclusion. Besides that it`s something unknown. Probably you have already passed through that and could give some tips about it. Our terminal is schedule just for 2019, but I`d like to get prepared way before that. Some sellers say that its gonna be much better, that you`re gonna make more money than today, but I don't know if it`s really true or not. I see that the routes sale prices increased after ISP, but still not sure why...
Can someone help me with that?
Thanks!

Prices may have gone up because ISPs will have to have 5 routes to stay in business. So at this time there is an artificial demand. Don't expect that just because one route is selling for $50k, that 5 routes are going to be worth $250k because the ISP WILL NOT earn five times as much as the IC.

Whether it will be more profitable for a lot more work and investment is anyone's guess. You will be giving up what little freedom you had to maybe come in a little later. As an ISP, you better have a firm hand in control of your drivers. Guaranteed to have 5 times as many problems with vehicles, missorted packages, broken scanners, and whatever else irked you about the job as when you had one route. What are you going to do when one of your drivers is sick, and another one just quits because he had to work harder the day before. And if you are out on the road and another of your trucks breaks down and you need to go off your route to help, then you have two late routes. For anyone who just wanted to deliver packages without headaches, that day is past for ISP. Your choice then is to make less money working for an ISP.

And then, after acquiring 5 routes, who knows what the value of your 'business' might be 2-3 years down the road. If the ISP nets about the same or even a little more, but has 5 times as much invested, AND has to work twice the hours, there won't be much more resale value than if you had just one route.

Another option besides selling would be to partner with fellow contractors and incorporate with equal shares. Or if you can sell now for a premium price, and don't want the headaches and responsibility of managing at least 5 routes, take the money and go to work for whoever bought your route.Make sure to get a long term employment commitment.

If you have a lot to invest, and don't mind the possibility of losing it all, you could plan on having about 20 or more routes and being able to hire a couple of managers, and retire on a small income. But remember that fedex can cancel your contract at any time, or non-renew you if they find someone to undercut you or just don't like the way you look.

 

[bacha29]

Hello,

I`m new here and I see that this post is a little old, but I`ve been reading a lot about the ISP transition and got to no conclusion. Besides that it`s something unknown. Probably you have already passed through that and could give some tips about it. Our terminal is schedule just for 2019, but I`d like to get prepared way before that. Some sellers say that its gonna be much better, that you`re gonna make more money than today, but I don't know if it`s really true or not. I see that the routes sale prices increased after ISP, but still not sure why...
Can someone help me with that?
Thanks![/QUote One of the reasons why you see the resale prices climbing in addition to adding routes is the introduction of the investor class. hedge funds and private wealth managers looking for yield in a zero interest rate environment.The returns while attractive are totally dependent on the ability to procure highly dependable and highly productive employees willing to go out there and deliver top of the scale performance for bottom of the scale money and do it on a continuous daily basis for an extended period of time. Keep in mind that the business model has nothing to do with the creation of equity for contractors. It's sole purpose is to provide X with access to low cost trucking and labor for the purpose of maximizing returns for fedex. When x saw the prices routes were bringing were clearly too high they set out to make it right by means of the ongoing downward pressure on settlements. As dmac pointed out a 500% increase in the number of trucks an ISP owns does not in any way shape or form guarantee a 500% increase in total returns to the contractor. As he also printed out and I wholeheartedly agree if the returns aren't proportionate to the risks involved and they are considerable in this case, the value goes down.

 

[Adao501]

I appreciate your help and it was valuable, but it brought me another concern: whats gonna happen after the transition?
Have any of you got to ISP? How is the new contract? Was it a good change, about the same or got worse?Are they gonna give new areas to service? Do I need to bid for that? Can someone give a lower bid and I loose it?
If you wish to PM me rather than post publicly, I will be glad to give my cell number or email address. I think that those informations are confidential, because I can`t find answers anywhere.

Thank you!