Cactus
Just telling it like it is
Until the system goes down then you're fuched.
Response,what’s the goal?
- Thread starter NC man
- Start date
Sorry, I know it makes you mad, but they don't have the money to pay like UPS. Look at their payroll as percentage of total income. It's at least half. After they pay for everything else(fuel, jets, vans, rent, etc) the profit they have left over is a small percentage of what they already pay on payroll. There's just no way they can accelerate everyone to top out in four years and pay close to $40hr. The money isn't there. And until they can get most of the senior couriers to retire they probably aren't going to stick to the current pay plan. They probably could if they wanted to but those guys are concerned about showing Wall Street growth in profit to get the share price up. If they have to screw you to do it they will because they're in it for themselves. The only way they'll ever be able to pay like UPS is if they ditch the Express part of it and run it like UPS with Ground. Even then I doubt they'd be anywhere as generous as UPS is. Maybe 35hr after 9 years with crappy benefits. Doubt they'll do anything with Express beyond trim it as much as possible.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
It’s called the cost of doing business.
And after that cost what they have in profit is going to dividends and reinvestment in the company in hopes of expanding those profits. They want to get rich and the employees are just pawns in that game. Unless you're willing to move into positions that they value more than the courier position, or leave for other work, or start and succeed at your own business, you'll always be behind the eight ball as a frontline employee. No one likes it, but it's reality. Some businesses bring in a lot of revenue and can afford to be generous to their employees to make sure they keep that revenue rolling in. Some businesses like FedEx are labor intensive, need a lot of employees to get the work done, have only so much revenue to spread around to the many employees, and are going to make sure their management class is going to be paid first. So move into management if you want more. I didn't like what was being done to me either and quit. Soon realized two things. That I didn't have skills that translated into better paying jobs. And the value of the traditional pension I just gave up. I came back, and ended up with a smaller pension and much less pay for almost 15 years work the second time around. Anger at the company didn't help me at all. Fine to not like what they're doing, but don't let anger screw yourself. But that was my situation. There's no traditional pension today but look out across the country. If you don't have a degree in something that pays well you've got to hump in an unionized company like UPS or get into a very necessary field like trucking where high turnover leads to better pay. If you're in anything that most can do with a little training then you will be paid accordingly. And often less than what FedEx pays. That's the harsh reality of the world we live in. Less pay for us puts more in the owner's pocket because they're in it to grow wealthy, not support all that you want to have.
throwaway10
Well-Known Member
Yes the money is there, don't be fooled by the shell game played(during quarterly reporting)... FedEx won't pay until they have too. The past several weeks, response has been a raise for me, went from making 400-500 a week(take home after a lot of deductions) to 800/week thanks for the raise freddy! But honestly the company has the $, they don't spend it until they are forced too by market demand or otherwise.
Let's see how profits end up after the Response debacle. And they may have taken on debt to handle the situation short term. Because they're a publicly traded company they have to be transparent with the SEC and are monitored by regulators as are all such companies. They can't for example say they have $2 billion in profits when in actuality they have $15 billion. Would land a bunch of management in prison.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
So you actually think Fred is gonna’ play by the rules?
Remember Enron? CEO spent 12 years in prison. That was a huge energy company. The Federal government is very serious about preserving the integrity of the stock market. Besides, if they were hiding billions, what good is that going to do couriers?
Stat41
Well-Known Member
Im old an have been in the industry for years and am still here. I know what time to not be near schools and the traffic patterns of my streets according to direction and time of day. I know a lot of my recipients by name if the address isn't totally correct. If there is an accident, road construction, or emergency, I can visualize THE ENTIRE AREA in my head and reroute my day to best get my deliveries done. I know North, South, East, West and us old timers use and understand these terms to communicate locations and street orientations with one another. Area knowledge never looses battery power, breaks down, or gets corrupted. As a matter of fact, it gets more reliable over time. I like technology. I like and use technology. But it is just a tool, and as with any tool, it has its limits. There is no substitute for area knowledge.
It will be fine
Well-Known Member
Cool story Grandpa. Area knowledge isn’t changing SPH by anything noticeable. Good tech can have drivers just as productive within a month on any route.
Stat41
Well-Known Member
The tech is great but it has its limits. Technology, even good tech, frequently is erroneous and fails. Area knowledge never fails and as such it is superior. There are many other reasons but I guess were going to have to disagree on this one sir.
It will be fine
Well-Known Member
I’ve had drivers that have been in the same area for years tell me an address doesn’t exist only to pull up the street view on google to show them where they are wrong. Area knowledge fails all the time and the arrogance that comes with it is an obstacle to be overcome frequently.
Gone fishin
Well-Known Member
Seems like you have bad drivers then , no seasoned courier I know does that
It will be fine
Well-Known Member
How many couriers do you manage?
Gone fishin
Well-Known Member
None , work at express. Just telling you facts that I know. Other stations could be different
McFeely
Huge Member
The map on my Leo consistently sends me to an abandoned house for this one stop I have. I’ll spare you the part about my area knowledge, because the technology is never wrong
The tools can be great in addition to driver experience, but the technology is only as good as the data behind it (ESRI, Navtech, Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze, etc). Sometimes the data is lagging for months in a new construction area.
It will be fine
Well-Known Member
It’s not binary. The tech can be wrong but area knowledge is much less valuable than the old folks seem to appreciate.The map on my Leo consistently sends me to an abandoned house for this one stop I have. I’ll spare you the part about my area knowledge, because the technology is never wrong
The tools can be a great tool in addition to driver experience, but the technology is only as good as the data behind it (ESRI, Navtech, Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze, etc). Sometimes the data is lagging for months in a new construction area.
Knowing the area isn’t the end all be all. I’ve run routes before using navigation on my phone, and finished before the guy who runs the route daily. Knowing the area does help though knowing which roads to avoid during certain times of the day. When you run a route you learn everything about the area, not just where things are.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
You can also say that they can show every red cent of all the billions they generate and that won't do the couriers any good either.
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