Mock Keter Audit

[Indecisi0n]

You didn't quote me.

 

[Integrity]

The safety committees are a joke. The only reason UPS allows them, and Keter, is to keep OSHA off their backs. At one time UPS was OSHA's biggest customer. They averaged paying over a million dollars a day in fines.

OSHA was actually getting ready to shut some centers, hubs down due to safety violations. UPS had 1 choice. Let the centers, hubs get shut down or agree to an outside agency monitoring the Health and Safety Process at UPS. UPS had to show improvement and this is why the DOK and safety committees came about.

The safety committees are a joke to UPS, it keeps OSHA off their backs. They tell OSHA all about these safety committees they have in all of their buildings and about all the good they are doing in the name of safety.

Keter and their audits are another story. UPS hates paying them and hates the control Keter has over them, but put up with them to keep OSHA off their backs. The Keter audits are serious to UPS. A failed Keter audit can be referred to OSHA, and, if warranted, OSHA can shut the place down.

Last year a center in Florida miserably failed their Keter audit. They came very close to being shut down. They were given another chance to pass the Keter audit. If they failed the second time, OSHA was shutting the place down.

There are members of some safety committees that are serious in what they do, but they are a joke to UPS because they have to put up with them. Not all bad, some safety issues do get addressed and fixed, if it does not cost UPS much money. But Keter is the real deal that can shut a place down, and UPS hates it.

Mugarolla,

Where to you get your information?

Much of it is inaccurate.

Sncerely,
I

 

[Integrity]

We have had a couple of Keter audits and the 'pretend' Keter audits are an annual thing at my building. I have never seen an hourly accompany anyone.

barnyard,

Nor have I.

Sincerely,
I

 

[Integrity]

What do you suggest as a remedy for your observation about the mock Keter audit.

By The Book,

A remedy would be for the contract to be followed.

Sincerely,
I

 

[By The Book]

By The Book,

A remedy would be for the contract to be followed.

Sincerely,
I

I think we feel the same way. I came to that conclusion by our names on this forum.

 

[Richard Harrow]

There are no mock Keter audits here.

Basically what happens is at the PCM, an on-car or the BM will feign some emotion saying "Keter is in the area", then at about 11:00 we'll get a message to the tune of "We're safe, Keter is in another building" (that is usually 800 to 1000 miles away) and then we all mock our supervisors.

In 14 years, I cannot recall Keter visiting our building a single time.

 

[OLDMAN3]

ChickenLegs,

Please elaborate.

Sincerely,
I

Wait....
I thought you were both Chickenlegs AND Integrity!
So you quote yourself, then ask yourself repeatedly to elaborate???
This could get interesting....NOT.

 

[Brownslave688]

There are no mock Keter audits here.

Basically what happens is at the PCM, an on-car or the BM will feign some emotion saying "Keter is in the area", then at about 11:00 we'll get a message to the tune of "We're safe, Keter is in another building" (that is usually 800 to 1000 miles away) and then we all mock our supervisors.

In 14 years, I cannot recall Keter visiting our building a single time.

Wow that would be lovely. At least a yearly occurrence here.

 

[Integrity]

Wow that would be lovely. At least a yearly occurrence here.

Brownslave688,

Why would that be lovely.

The Keter Audits are for the good of the employees of UPS.

Sincerely,
I

 

[kingOFchester]

Didn't read the entire first post.

All I care to add is this, How can anyone expect us to take the Keter Audit seriously when you have management staging the entire building? Miraculously the piles of boxes are cleaned up. PT sups do not get on slides to clean them. Egress is maintained behind trucks. Drivers who are 100% are held at the back of building and sent message when to pull in to try and get the auditors to ask them the DOK. Drivers who do not know the DOK are told to park in the back and clock out there and whisked away without coming in the office. Building is inspected and issues fixed day before a potential arrival of the auditors.

Day after audit or when it is announced they hit another building, back to the norm.

A keter audit in my building is a classic example of smoke and mirrors.

 

[kingOFchester]

BS.
Keter is a third party vendor that is hired and paid by UPS. They have NO power or authority over UPS, in any way. Keter doesn't and cannot "shut down" anything. NOTHING Keter audits or finds gets reported to OSHA.
Their findings on audits are reported to UPS, and UPS only.

All well and true, but internal audits and or audits performed by insurance carriers can be subpoenaed by OSHA.

BTW, I believe Keter is an outsource company owned by Liberty Mutual. I do know that to some degree Keter is a part of Liberty Mutual. That is a fact.

 

[Integrity]

Didn't read the entire first post.

All I care to add is this, How can anyone expect us to take the Keter Audit seriously when you have management staging the entire building? Miraculously the piles of boxes are cleaned up. PT sups do not get on slides to clean them. Egress is maintained behind trucks. Drivers who are 100% are held at the back of building and sent message when to pull in to try and get the auditors to ask them the DOK. Drivers who do not know the DOK are told to park in the back and clock out there and whisked away without coming in the office. Building is inspected and issues fixed day before a potential arrival of the auditors.

Day after audit or when it is announced they hit another building, back to the norm.

A keter audit in my building is a classic example of smoke and mirrors.

kingOFchester,

Would you consider this type of conduct as corporate corruption?

Sincerely,
I

 

[Integrity]

All well and true, but internal audits and or audits performed by insurance carriers can be subpoenaed by OSHA.

BTW, I believe Keter is an outsource company owned by Liberty Mutual. I do know that to some degree Keter is a part of Liberty Mutual. That is a fact.

kingOFchester,

What is your proof of this fact?

Sincerely,
I

 

[kingOFchester]

kingOFchester,

What is your proof of this fact?

Sincerely,
I

First, a little search at liberty mutual website there are several documents that show the organizational chart for LM. It shows where Keter falls under LM.


Look at these Linkedin profiles. Makes it pretty clear:

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/daniel-fedor/12/695/887
"
Senior Consultant
Liberty Mutual Insurance - KETER Team

Perform nationwide facility safety and health audits, accident risk management training and specialized industrial hygiene services for UPS. In addition, I was one of the key auditors involved with this company’s Corporate Regulatory Compliance Review process."

Here are a few more:


http://www.linkedin.com/pub/christina-kapustianyk/12/45/2b1

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/orlando-gutierrez/12/196/5b8

 

[kingOFchester]

kingOFchester,

Would you consider this type of conduct as corporate corruption?

Sincerely,
I

I would consider it more of a low managerial corruption.

 

[barnyard]

A Keter audit does much of the same thing an ISO 9001 audit would to. If UPS were adhered to ISO 9001 or similar standards, passing or failing a Keter audit would not be as difficult.

In our building, we have a 'fake' audit every year, as does every building in our region. The thinking was that if everyone had a fake audit, a real audit would not be that difficult.

Way back, I used to do annual building audits and storm water audits in my building. Even if the audits were done, if they were not filed in the correct place, points were deducted. It is pretty amazing how much money UPS spends to get this stuff right. I would think that the person that knows how much is spent in every building to get it right is pretty darn irritated when that building does not pass either audit.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I would consider it more of a low managerial corruption.

This may or may not surprise you but it is common practice to "dress up" for company. When I was military it was not uncommon to hear "If it don't move, paint it" when we knew there was an inspection team coming.

I agree with you and would love to see an unannounced Keter audit.


Resident know-it-all.

 

[barnyard]

Many of the Liberty Mutual people are former UPS employees. A friend of mine does the same type of thing for another company. The job is to analyze accident and incident trends and UPS' plan to reduce those trends. They also help to set the costs of crashes and injuries so that UPS can budget for them.

Once an injury and accident picture is developed, one can pretty easily use those trends to predict how much those incidents are going to cost. Once a cost is known, an accountant somewhere can say, "You have this much money to spend, if you reduce these incidents that are costing us this much."

If accidents and injuries are reduced, that is money that is added right to the bottom line. The more the company makes, the easier it is for us to demand more on the next contract.

Have to look at the bigger picture.

 

[kingOFchester]

This may or may not surprise you but it is common practice to "dress up" for company. When I was military it was not uncommon to hear "If it don't move, paint it" when we knew there was an inspection team coming.

I agree with you and would love to see an unannounced Keter audit.


Resident know-it-all.

Of course, however we are not talking about "fluffing things up", we are talking about down right knowingly ignoring corporate guidelines and then fake being compliant. Nothing surprises me anymore at UPS on the local level. Numbers being fixed, hours being hidden, drivers having boards merged with other drivers. Egress totally ignored, slides being used daily for walking on. DOK being fudged. S&V's being doctored and not even riding with drivers. Observation forms being completed when sup never even left the building. Employees having hours shaved off the time card. Lunches put in on timecards when lunch was never taken. How about this, Red tagged trucks having the tags cut off and put in line up do to not having enough trucks. Seen that several times.

Not all management is bad. But just as there are drivers that will work the system, there are managers and sups that will do whatever it takes to hold their position or get promoted.

 

[barnyard]

I have not seen that kind of corruption in my building. Even when we had CMs walked out, it was for misclassfying numbers to make other numbers look better, not shorting people.

I read many of the posts here and sometimes think that I work for a different company than some of you.