Off the street seasonal--got called back again for summer season

ksaldo

New Member
So I've been told by my manager that I've done a good job this holiday season by driving and delivering packages. I was supposed to be let go by Dec 31st, but they're still calling me to work and they asked me if I could work this week too. I've done 260 stops the most before Christmas. My manager said I could come back and work on summer season too and they actually wanted me to apply inside work as a preloader and work seasons as a driver. Should I take it and how much would I have to work before I can get a FT position and a route or is that out of the question because I've heard my center hasn't hired a FT driver in years. Thnx in advance
 

Ms.PacMan

Well-Known Member
UPS hires 6 drivers from the inside (by seniority) then 1 outside hire. I would ask your center manager first how many drivers they are away from that outside hire. If you can swing a PT job then take the preload job and wait until it's your turn to drive - could be awhile, but you will get benefits (after a year?) and start gaining vacation weeks which will be a plus when you do get a driver job.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
UPS hires 6 drivers from the inside (by seniority) then 1 outside hire. I would ask your center manager first how many drivers they are away from that outside hire. If you can swing a PT job then take the preload job and wait until it's your turn to drive - could be awhile, but you will get benefits (after a year?) and start gaining vacation weeks which will be a plus when you do get a driver job.

And the union's proposing changing it to 8:1, so this could change by the end of the summer.

I agree with Ms.PacMan - you should attempt to discuss with your center manager your prospects of being an off the street hire. Every center is different, but in mine in typically takes at least ten years (and has been stretching much longer than that recently) to go into FT package car driving. Meanwhile, they're always short seasonal drivers, and no PTers sign-up to be cover drivers, so we have persons with less than a year seniority who spend most of the year driving (at the seasonal rate, of course). Of course, the months they spend working Preload must be a shocker (it pays only $8.50-$9.50/hour to start, and they're lucky to get 3.5 hours). Whatever you do, don't be fooled if any manager attempts to convince you that he/she can pull some strings to get you driving much sooner than you otherwise would. They tell this to everyone here -- attempting to get Super Man-like work performances -- usually saying 'we'll have you quit, then we'll hire you off the street as a the 1:6.' I've been here for well over a decade, they've used this line on dozens of kids, and guess how many it's happened to (hint: rhymes with hero). Sadly, that doesn't stop people from thinking 'well, it's going to happen to ME!'
 

UPSGUY72

Well-Known Member
So I've been told by my manager that I've done a good job this holiday season by driving and delivering packages. I was supposed to be let go by Dec 31st, but they're still calling me to work and they asked me if I could work this week too. I've done 260 stops the most before Christmas. My manager said I could come back and work on summer season too and they actually wanted me to apply inside work as a preloader and work seasons as a driver. Should I take it and how much would I have to work before I can get a FT position and a route or is that out of the question because I've heard my center hasn't hired a FT driver in years. Thnx in advance

If you take that PT job on the inside your not going to be doing any seasonal driving... The next time you drive will if you win a PT air driver bid or a cover driver bid other wise you will be just a PT inside worker.
 

Ms.PacMan

Well-Known Member
If you take that PT job on the inside your not going to be doing any seasonal driving... The next time you drive will if you win a PT air driver bid or a cover driver bid other wise you will be just a PT inside worker.
We had 2 preloaders as our seasonal drivers - and the poor girls were preloading first then driving all day, last week and today.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
If you take that PT job on the inside your not going to be doing any seasonal driving... The next time you drive will if you win a PT air driver bid or a cover driver bid other wise you will be just a PT inside worker.

Will vary based upon your center. They're always begging for PTers to go into seasonal driving here -- we have a couple PTers with September seniority dates that drove this past peak season. I use to do it, but it's a $5/hour pay cut for me (unlike FT progression, pay is not red circled) and thus between PT and jumping, I can make quite a bit more money. I'll probably drive this summer, though.
 

ksaldo

New Member
Will vary based upon your center. They're always begging for PTers to go into seasonal driving here -- we have a couple PTers with September seniority dates that drove this past peak season. I use to do it, but it's a $5/hour pay cut for me (unlike FT progression, pay is not red circled) and thus between PT and jumping, I can make quite a bit more money. I'll probably drive this summer, though.

yeah the center that i work at has part time workers working as seasonal drivers so most of those people here who didnt answer my question in a nice manner don't know what they're talking about...some of you ups people are being a bunch of a**holes
 

Catatonic

Nine Lives
yeah the center that i work at has part time workers working as seasonal drivers so most of those people here who didnt answer my question in a nice manner don't know what they're talking about...some of you ups people are being a bunch of a**holes

I don't think Ms.PacMan is one.

Of course, she does not have to compensate for a small penis. :surprised:
 

Jackburton

Gone Fish'n
yeah the center that i work at has part time workers working as seasonal drivers so most of those people here who didnt answer my question in a nice manner don't know what they're talking about...some of you ups people are being a bunch of a**holes
You're the one that wants to come work with us a**holes, hope you like the view as that's all you're gunna see as the newest hire in seniority.
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
Got called back for summer seasonal in January? Must be Southern Hemisphere somewhere.

They do the same thing here (at the conclusion of peak, invite seasonals back for summer) -- they're always shorthanded seasonal drivers, and it makes their recruiting efforts easier.
 

ksaldo

New Member
yeah thankfully the center that i work at people there are nice i was mainly refering to you :censored2:s here who find my question funny my center manager already mentioned to me that i might get hired because the route that i do is done by an old guy who is going to retire soon i know u probably dont like an off the street person getting a ft job but it still happens even if u hate the fact that you had to work for 10 years as a preloader to to get a shot at driving. i know i would be pissed too :)
 

UnconTROLLed

perfection
yeah thankfully the center that i work at people there are nice i was mainly refering to you :censored2:s here who find my question funny my center manager already mentioned to me that i might get hired because the route that i do is done by an old guy who is going to retire soon i know u probably dont like an off the street person getting a ft job but it still happens even if u hate the fact that you had to work for 10 years as a preloader to to get a shot at driving. i know i would be pissed too :)

BBAG?
 

Bagels

Family Leave Fridays!!!
yeah thankfully the center that i work at people there are nice i was mainly refering to you :censored2:s here who find my question funny my center manager already mentioned to me that i might get hired because the route that i do is done by an old guy who is going to retire soon i know u probably dont like an off the street person getting a ft job but it still happens even if u hate the fact that you had to work for 10 years as a preloader to to get a shot at driving. i know i would be pissed too :)

Don't drink the Kool-Aid -- remember what I told you earlier. Once that "old guy" retires, his route has to go up for bid (among existing drivers within the building); even if the center manager gifts you a driving job, he cannot gift you a route. If he did, oodles of grievances would be filed, you'd be off the route, and the center manager would be red-faced. You see, when you go into driving you become known what's called a "swing driver" -- somebody who pulls whatever route needs to be covered. And as you'd expect from a union shop, swing drivers with more seniority than you get to pick the routes they want to do first. You'll likely spend your first months driving learning a different route every single week (and sometimes multiple routes per week). Remember, during the Holiday season -- which you recently covered -- UPS puts you in a specific area to handle heavy volumes. But Summer is completely different... you're covering for vacations, not volume, and therefore you'll be in different areas every week, if not every day.

Just remember the Kool Aid I talked to you about. Since the center manager has offered you a job on the Preload, he has no plans to gift you a FT driving job.

(FWIW, the lowest-senority driver with a route in my building -- and there's over a couple hundred routes -- has over 20-years seniority.)
 
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