Runners......

[therookie]

Nope, I personally don't care one bit. I myself have been laid off here at UPS MANY times the first few years. I put my time in doing that.

Good for you! 2 wrongs always make a right! Way to be buddy!

Now I will work as efficiently as possible to get home to my kids.

As efficiently when OJS'd too? Hmmmm some how I doubt it. Soon you'll run yourself into the ground.

Rookie, I'm guessing when management is volunteering unpaid weeks off - your hand is raised first to allow the younger drivers the opportunity to work?

Nope.... Got to feed my family too. But Im not going to do 1 and a half days work in one day. Ever.

And there you have it! UPS has you exactly where they want you, running like chickens with their heads cut off, and we'll remain this way till we pull the emergency brake and do things the right way.

I couldn't agree with you more stevetheupsguy. By the way I'm from the Patchogue Ctr.

Good idea Rookie. Lets all slow it down and bloat this pig with excess drivers so the company loses money and we all lose our jobs. I like the way you think.

You sir.... are just missing my point. Im saying work the way your supposed to. Work as if they are sitting right next to you in that jump seat. Thats all.

Bottom line.......
Doing 200+ stops everyday is just dumb.

 

[whiskey]

You hit nail on the head with your thread Steve.

 

[Overpaid Union Thug]

My favorite is when the runners keep getting more and more work and say that they are going to lay down (they say "stay out") as a way of protesting. Its usually BS though and they still come in early. On the rare occasion that they actually do this they actually end up running the route closer to the way its supposed to be run anyway. They think that they are proving a point but the rest of us haven't quite figured out what it is yet.

 

[Bubblehead]

The issue is easily reduced to the age old analogy of "someone trying to have their cake and eat it to".
Management preaches safety, then ignores the most obvious offenders.
In bonus centers these drivers are rewarded for cheating the system.
In a post PAS center, there is no way you can run scratch observing every method they preach.
If you think you can then your missing a few.

As for the runners, if they stop, all of them, they will be all right.
One at a time and they are more vulnerable.
All of them at the same time and routes will have to be added.
Union shop. Its about the greater good for all.
Fair days work for a fair days pay.
No more no less.
We all play by their rules, we all make a lot of money.

 

[screamin chicken]

it's like that here also, but metro drivers are only doing 140-160 which is still way to much. These guys that are doing that many stops, and complaining about it are just going to keep having those loads, and management is acting like there your best friend, and then when they are not around the management is laughing at how much they are slamming them, and how they have have lay offs. I think about myself now and how I can make more money, all the running I used to do made have 140-160 on a reg. day.

 

[Jones]

My favorite is when the runners keep getting more and more work and say that they are going to lay down (they say "stay out") as a way of protesting. Its usually BS though and they still come in early. On the rare occasion that they actually do this they actually end up running the route closer to the way its supposed to be run anyway. They think that they are proving a point but the rest of us haven't quite figured out what it is yet.

I had a guy(long time runner) tell me, with a straight face, that he was "taking the gloves off, from now on he wasn't coming in before 1730"
I just said "That's right tiger, you show'em how it's gonna be..."
I'm sure the DM was losing sleep over this particular rebellion, probably had a conference call the next day to try and find a resolution to that devastating drop in production. It's amazing to me that someone can work for this company for over 15 years and still be so completely clueless about how things work.

 

[DorkHead]

Good idea Rookie. Lets all slow it down and bloat this pig with excess drivers so the company loses money and we all lose our jobs. I like the way you think.

WRONG again TIE. There is nothing in his post suggesting that the drivers slow down. Please reread the post.

 

[gandydancer]

...Steve its interesting watching the tone of you posts change...

Other things can cause it, but getting "fired" by UPS without just cause will definately have that kind of effect.

 

[705red]

Other things can cause it, but getting "fired" by UPS without just cause will definately have that kind of effect.

I have said it before, ups creates the union employee! Eventually everyone is wronged and its a shock to ups when they see all the union bumper stickers in the lot, or more people wearing union shirts and jackets.

We have a shirt here that sells like hot cakes, "will strike if necessary", management blames our relationship on this shirt!? HAHA

If people where not wronged this shirt would never sell!

 

[blue efficacy]

If the union employees treated part timers more fairly around contract time, getting laid off to part time wouldn't be as bad as it is. Just reminding everyone.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Other things can cause it, but getting "fired" by UPS without just cause will definately have that kind of effect.

As much as I like STUG and what he has and will continue to offer here, I do have to say that he may have gone too far and ultimately brought this upon himself. I do, however, disagree with the discipline handed out and think it could have been resolved with a meeting with all of the parties involved.

 

[trplnkl]

As much as I like STUG and what he has and will continue to offer here, I do have to say that he may have gone too far and ultimately brought this upon himself. I do, however, disagree with the discipline handed out and think it could have been resolved with a meeting with all of the parties involved.

You are right to an extent UpState. I think Steve would have never admitted to being a runner prior to his injury, but has now seen the light. Someone mentioned earlier in this thread that UPS never disciplines the runners, which is true ......until they get hurt. Then they are thrown under the bus with everyone else that doesn't hit the "numbers".
Since Steve's epiphany came about while he was struggling with management to do what they should have already been doing in the safety program. Then he gets hurt on the job and all of a sudden he is lower than the belly of an alligator. Now he sees the light that the way to keep safe on the job is through better safe wirk methods. Better safety attained is is more inportant than running the numbers that feeds a CMs carrier.

 

[brownrodster]

There will always be runners. Some people will be done at 1700 no matter how many stops you give them. I'm a very fast driver. However, I follow the methods better than most. I once went on road with a different driver as his helper. I was shocked by how much faster you could go by letting the truck idle, leaving the bulkhead open, not using your seatbelt, and running to and from the truck etc... I was actually slowing him down if all I did was walk with a brisk pace. He could do the route faster himself without a helper unless the helper actually ran their 4ss off. Some guys just don't care. I know one guy who hates this job so much he says he doesn't care if he gets fired and breaks every rule there is to get done early everynight.

 

[Livin the Dream?]

If the union employees treated part timers more fairly around contract time, getting laid off to part time wouldn't be as bad as it is. Just reminding everyone.

This is the "special Grandma that lives in the attic that nobody speaks of" around UPS. No wonder you have a bad rep here

UPS preaches advancement from within, then treats the lower tier employees like disposable diapers. Those in part-time, loaders, unloaders, etc., have had the same starting pay for 15 years. Inflation adjusted, starting pay has gone down from 35 years ago. But hey, thats ok, because we gave them benefits - that now take a year to kick in instead of 90 days.

Loaders / unloaders have a much more physically demanding job than ANYONE at UPS, and are paid less than starting wage at McDonalds. It is a harder job BY FAR (in my opinion) than driving a PC, by orders of magnitude. Anyone who argues that it is not the most physically demanding job at UPS has either forgotten what it is like, or is delusional. For PC drivers to make 4X what a loader/unloader does is criminal, a travesty.

To then have UPS management wonder why there is so much turnover and unrest in the ranks is nothing less than stupidity. As my daughter would say, "DUH!"

Us drivers here have swallowed hook, line and sinker the story we heard that we are worth it, we make more because we have gone thru the ranks, earned our stripes, we deserve it. Bullspit. If we were to be honest with ourselves, look inside ourselves, we know that we are paid a stupid-good wage for a job that is, let's face it, unskilled. We are lucky. We hit the lottery. We are like those who show disdain for those that sue for 10 billion bucks for spilling hot coffee on thier crotch, but are on the phone with 10 lawyers the moment it happens to them to try & cash in.

We cannot admit publicly the complete and total unfairness at UPS - that we are overpaid, and those that work just as hard, harder, are underpaid.

5 seconds after a particular member on this site reads this post, he will respond. He won't be able to help himself. He will say "well, everyone had a chance to vote on the contract, this is the contract you voted for", and to that I would say shame on you, and here is why;

When I started here, I knew it was a Union job. That is the extent of my understanding of unions. I knew I had to pay some of my paycheck to the unions to be employed by UPS. That is what I knew. I'm not stupid, and I'm not saying anyone just starting out at UPS is unintelligent (regarding Unions anyway). I'm saying if there is going to be a union, then the union has a duty, an absolute and complete obligation to represent ALL union brothers & sisters, MOST ESPECIALLY those that need the most help with a union contract, the new guy.

It is no secret that the starting wage is stupidly low, and driver wage is stupidly high. If the uniopn were to accomplish what they state thier mission is, this would not be the case.

 

[trplnkl]

Hello BBag, how ya been?

 

[dilligaf]

Hello BBag, how ya been?

LMFAO

 

[over9five]

<sigh>

I'll say what I always say whenever this comes up.

If the part timers attended local meetings; if the part-timers voted... then by their numbers alone, THEY COULD RUN THE UNION and get whatever they want.

 

[trplnkl]

<sigh>

I'll say what I always say whenever this comes up.

If the part timers attended local meetings; if the part-timers voted... then by their numbers alone, THEY COULD RUN THE UNION and get whatever they want.

The only problem I have with that is logistics, my local is 120 miles from our center. Makes it hard to run down the the ole union hall.

 

[iowa boy]

<sigh>

I'll say what I always say whenever this comes up.

If the part timers attended local meetings; if the part-timers voted... then by their numbers alone, THEY COULD RUN THE UNION and get whatever they want.

Over, I agree with your statement 100%. There needs to be more involvement by everyone of the union hourlies. But the problem around here where I'm at is that our local holds its meetings at 700 on a tuesday night once a month. So the parttimers on the local sort can't attend these meetings. The local says it won't change the meeting time as no one in our local wants to work on the weekends unless they are forced to. So with that decision, the local has excluded about 20% of the UPS teamsters here in the center I work in.

Now mind you I'm not trying to be argumentative or confrontational, it just kinda burns my gluteous maximus that 20% percent of our membership here at UPS has been excluded from this and people complain cuz the parttimers don't get involved.

 

[Livin the Dream?]

An over-simplification, if you will allow -

9-5, I feel you are completely correct; the problem is is that the vast majority of part time employees don't participate because there is absolutely no education (indoctrination) by the union.

The union should spend almost ZERO time with the rank & file drivers, who understand completely how to access the union, and spend 100% of the time introducing themselves to newbies & explaining the benefits of the union. Or advising the when & where of meetings at the very least.

Here, you have to be a PI to find out anything about the Union.