Right about face...

[Buck Fifty]

So I called-in sick twice last week amidst high volume. Our facility has stayed between 27-29 degrees each morning. So when a preloader who also scans large amounts of SurePost accurately calls-in sick it puts management in a bind as to finding the right guinea pig whom they think can juggle such a set, right? It was when I called-in again this week having come down with a second fever and chills that I heard about it. Boss wasn't happy. Asked me for a doctors note. So I got him one. He also had some choice managerial words for me like, "Are you gonna call in sick twice this week too?" when I was calling it in. You know, the usual stuff one gets from management. Doc' put me on Cipro and this little piece of paper says H1N1 with "walking pneumonia". So about mid-shift as I'm part way through this mornings coughing fit I am approached by three management asking me to confirm what my doctors note says which, yes, I have the friend-ing flu, okay? Yes. Why else would I call in sick 3 times in the same two weeks? Apparently management are capable "reading" and even more impressive: communicating with each other in an efficient, timely manner. Tide turned. Fast. Instead of, "Are you gonna call in sick twice this week too?" or "You DO know we're short-staffed as it is, right?" at the time of my first call-in last week... to... "We think that it might be in ALL of our better interest if you use your sick days until any danger of potential contamination of those around you has been resolved and you're feeling better." Well here's the problem guys... see, I can't miss any more work because this is all I've got at this time and for those who need the reminder: I not only haven't accrued any sick days yet, I only bring home $170 a week which if I miss one day I go without something vital(ie: car insurance, gas, food, phone etc), two days missed sets me back 2-3 weeks. That's just how it is. Some of you need be reminded that those of us within our first year work the very hardest. We take-on the most responsibilities and we are given the hardest sets. We given opportunities to expand to processing SurePost, setting-up the irreg-lift, putting it away... we're the first to arrive and we are the LAST to leave. We get worked the hardest for the least money. WE ARE the very Lifeblood of this God-damned company and if we're sick with the flu... we're friend-ing sick and we do NOT need to hear about it from those with a 2012 Ford Mustang Cobra in the parkinglot.

Its called dues. Pay them ! Along with your union dues of course. Welcome to BC !

 

[barnyard]

Take care of yourself. Walking pneumonia is not that far from full-blown pneumonia. I tried to 'walk it off' and 'get better on weekends', by the time my supe sent me to the Dr, I had full-blown pneumonia and was off work for 1 month. My Dr. only let me come back if I promised to get a route with a helper (told my boss that and they put me on a route with a helper, just happened to work out that the route I was doing, got a helper). Without a helper, my Dr wanted me to be off another 3 weeks.

There are a couple of issues to be aware of with pneumonia: 1. you will get sick more frequently this year; 2. once you get pneumonia, you are more susceptible to get it in the future and it will be worse.

 

[PT Stewie]

LongTime, we(the new-hires) are the very cheap labor that make this company money and help it prosper. The lifeblood.

The new hires I started with long ago in my training group ago 15 + years ago to be exact are long gone. Lifeblood hell ! We are an entry on a excel spread sheet, mere canon fodder . A number to satisfy handling the amount of packages on any given day. A benchmark total just out of reach of the sort manager. The guy that runs the company is an accountant . The name of the game is to do more with less and satisfy the stock holders. To quote an old song "We're giving you a number tak'in way your name".

 

[brownmonster]

Sick days? Don't have any. Called in sick 7 times including 12years of school.

 

[Anonymous 10]

I just want to know if you feel better.

 

[Anonymous 10]

Sick days? Don't have any. Called in sick 7 times including 12years of school.

So what do you do when you are pissing out your ass?? Is already been confirmed you use maxi pads do you where depends also.

 

[brownmonster]

So what do you do when you are pissing out your ass?? Is already been confirmed you use maxi pads do you where depends also.

I should answer this when you can complete a coherent sentence but here goes. I man up and go to work whenever I can. It's amazing how less often people are sick when they don't have paid sick days. For the record my last call in was in November of last year. 1st in about 10 years.

 

[rod]

If it makes you feel better they don't just pick on the new-hires. When I screwed up my back (herniated disk) after not missing one day in 17 years, my center manager called me at home and told me: (this is a direct quote)--"get my ass back to work because I know you are faking it". If you learn one thing real quick it should be that you aren't working for a company that has any concern about how you feel. That is why every center manager and sup you will ever work for is a trained doctor and can diagnois your ailment over the phone when you call in.

 

[DS]

I should answer this when you can complete a coherent sentence but here goes. I man up and go to work whenever I can. It's amazing how less often people are sick when they don't have paid sick days. For the record my last call in was in November of last year. 1st in about 10 years.

I think 407 posts exclusively on his i phone,so he misses a bit here and there, but I'm like you,I have to be pretty friend'd up to call in sick,although I would not feel guilty if I did.I worked through a broken rib,several pneumonia episodes,and a
painful foot problem.To be honest,I hate losing out on that $200 a day unless I really have something important to do.
Monster,you will gain nothing from being so dedicated.Take day off and do something important.

 

[brownmonster]

I think 407 posts exclusively on his i phone,so he misses a bit here and there, but I'm like you,I have to be pretty friend'd up to call in sick,although I would not feel guilty if I did.I worked through a broken rib,several pneumonia episodes,and a
painful foot problem.To be honest,I hate losing out on that $200 a day unless I really have something important to do.
Monster,you will gain nothing from being so dedicated.Take day off and do something important.

I have 2 optional days and 5 single vacation days. When I need a day off, I take it. Taking a day off a week from Wed to take my kid to the airport. Apparently he needs to study abroad for six months so he doesn't end up a tampax, diaper wearing truck driver like the old man. Lol.

 

[rod]

I have 2 optional days and 5 single vacation days. When I need a day off, I take it. Taking a day off a week from Wed to take my kid to the airport. Apparently he needs to study abroad for six months so he doesn't end up a tampax, diaper wearing truck driver like the old man. Lol.

Yes -- those foreign broads can be sexy.

 

[brownmonster]

Yes -- those foreign broads can be sexy.

Especially Latinos.

 

[rod]

Especially Latinos.

Oh yes!!

 

[cya.]

That should indeed be the UPS motto... "No one here... owes you anything" How suiting.

I understand how you feel. I've been here two years loading in a high-volume area. I load 2day and get my ass blasted by AT&T every night. An easy night for me for me is when I get less than 2000 packages in the 4hrs they give us. I've been accused of stealing phones twice with no proof or reason, lied to by management, cheated out of vacation time I had pre approved by my fulltime supe, etc, etc.

But I don't let it get to me. I'm a "good worker" because I show up everyday and I don't get misloads. Yea, when I call in sick I get the inevitable guilt trip about how much they "need" me, but guess what? They will find SOMEONE to do the work if you can't be there. I know as a pt your paycheck will hurt after missing only one day, but making yourself sicker will make you miss even more. Not worth it.

 

[brownmonster]

Oh yes!!

He wants me to visit him in Buenos Aries. I'm afraid I would never leave.

 

[Bagels]

Some of you need be reminded that those of us within our first year work the very hardest. We take-on the most responsibilities and we are given the hardest sets. We given opportunities to expand to processing SurePost, setting-up the irreg-lift, putting it away... we're the first to arrive and we are the LAST to leave. We get worked the hardest for the least money. WE ARE the very Lifeblood of this God-damned company and if we're sick with the flu... we're friend-ing sick and we do NOT need to hear about it from those with a 2012 Ford Mustang Cobra in the parkinglot.

FuzeBox,
I work in a facility with more than 300 Preloaders. Consider yourself lucky - here, persons with less than 3 years seniority will be on-call most of the winter. Here, all permanent new hires begin their careers as a floater loading package cars (they may have previously worked in the unload/small sort as a seasonal), sometimes filling vacancies elsewhere. It's not common for them to be the last to leave, although -- for whatever reason -- many choose to arrive one-hour before start.

The problem is... they're replaceable. Every year we go through 50 or more new hires (many who are here just for the summer or peak, with no desire for permanent employment). They're most definitely not the lifeblood of UPS, they work hard... but somebody will work just as hard. Management will harass you for calling-in no matter how long you've been here, or how long it's been since your last call-in. It's just part of life at UPS. Honestly, if you can't handle it... maybe this isn't the environment for you.

 

[Buck Fifty]

I have 2 optional days and 5 single vacation days. When I need a day off, I take it. .

Same here, and I never schedule my days. I call in, this way UPS has no say, control, or leverage on any of my plans ! We have a 30 yr driver at the hub that has only missed one day (other than his vacations of course). He's a freak. So are you, 1 day in 10 years. Kudos to both of you. I usually call out 1 day on the months I don't have a vacation and of course its a 3 day weekend.

 

[LongTimeComing]

I have been in management for 11 years, and I have yet to understand why so many managers give people so much crap for calling-in sick. I don't want those people around me or my other employees. I don't care if they are lying or not. If they have a sick day on the books, they are there to be used. And, for me at least, the faster they get used up, the faster the people who truly are abusing their call-ins all of the sudden have an attendance problem when the sick day's are all gone. These are the employees that are the problems....not the once-in-a-blue-moon sick person. And it's the employees own fault for using up all of the sick days so quickly and giving management the easiest, indisputable disciplinary action to hand out. Attendance issues comprise nearly 70% of all discipline handed out.

Again, not sure why call-ins are such a big issue for some managers. Let them dig their own grave, if so they choose to.

 

[TxRoadDawg]

Again, not sure why call-ins are such a big issue for some managers. Let them dig their own grave, if so they choose to.

Some sups get stuck inheriting 'people' that should have never walked in the door let alone made seniority. Makes ya have to ride every good horse to death you have to make up for the pos's your stuck working also...

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I should answer this when you can complete a coherent sentence but here goes. I man up and go to work whenever I can. It's amazing how less often people are sick when they don't have paid sick days. For the record my last call in was in November of last year. 1st in about 10 years.

We have 4 personal and 5 sick days and are able to use them interchangeably.

My pet peeve are those drivers who are allowed to take "dead days" yet still have paid days on the books. Make them take all of their paid days before allowing them to take "dead days".