Shippers UPS, Amazon have trouble filling holiday jobs

[Catatonic]

I guess you're right - It only takes 1 Canadian to do the job of 3 Americans.

I assume this has something to do with handling wieners?

 

[Macbrother]

here where I work, there are 3 shifts for hub employees, twilight, midnight, and sunrise

Ok but for your preload operation somebody has to unload from a trailer to place in a belt or a cage for another guy to put in a truck, right? That's all preload. We also have mulitple shifts but "preload" must do all of these tasks, of course different people are doing different things.

 

[wayfair]

Ok but for your preload operation somebody has to unload from a trailer to place in a belt or a cage for another guy to put in a truck, right? That's all preload. We also have mulitple shifts but "preload" must do all of these tasks, of course different people are doing different things.

if you want to be specific, during the midnight and twilight sort, there are boxline sorters.... so they are part of the preload??? no, they are boxline sorters...
I get what you're saying, but it should say sunrise... I've loaded trailers during sunrise that had no affect on preload

 

[Macbrother]

if you want to be specific, during the midnight and twilight sort, there are boxline sorters.... so they are part of the preload??? no, they are boxline sorters...
I get what you're saying, but it should say sunrise... I've loaded trailers during sunrise that had no affect on preload

I don't really get your first sentence -- each shift (depending on your location) generally has its share of sorters (or pickoff) , unloaders, and loaders.

You said in an earlier post that "preloaders don't sort or unload." This is categorically false. Trailers are backed into a bay door. They are then unloaded onto a belt, which carry them to sorters, which put them on the right belt they are supposed to go to in the building, at which point loaders take them off a belt and put them in a truck. They may be done boxline or beltline but the general theme is the same. This entire operation is called preload and those who carry it out are preloaders. Sunrise may or may not be another name for it, I don't know, we don't call it that here.

 

[wayfair]

I don't really get your first sentence -- each shift (depending on your location) generally has its share of sorters (or pickoff) , unloaders, and loaders.

You said in an earlier post that "preloaders don't sort or unload." This is categorically false. Trailers are backed into a bay door. They are then unloaded onto a belt(by unloaders), which carry them to sorters(main/local sort), which put them on the right belt they are supposed to go to in the building, at which point loaders take them off a belt and put them in a truck(preloaders). They may be done boxline or beltline but the general theme is the same. This entire operation is called preload and those who carry it out are preloaders. Sunrise may or may not be another name for it, I don't know, we don't call it that here.

you must be in a small center, each job title here is that.. unloader(trailer), loader(trailer), PC loader(preload), PC unloader(twilight), main sort, local sort, small sort, etc

A boxline sorter, is the guy that sorts from the slide/belt to the boxline(cage for preload) that happens from twi-mid-sun shifts..
throughout all shifts, all titles are running simultaneously

 

['Lord Brown's bidding']

I do not work in a small center. A boxline sorter works on the preload. An unloader unloading packages works IN the unload, but he is working ON (or during) the preload.

Twilight here refers to the time period for a shift (i.e. twilight SORT or twlight HUB; however, there is also a night HUB, a day HUB, etc. In these instances, however, the operation is HUB, not TWILIGHT. Preload, incidentally, does not have a time descriptor that I have seen. It's just "The Preload". I have never heard of "sunrise-anything". The time descriptors I know of are: day, twilight, and midnight.

 

[wayfair]

I have never heard of "sunrise-anything". The time descriptors I know of are: day, twilight, and midnight.

funny you've never heard of it, if you look at the online applications for UPS, it states the shifts/times on the website google it... lol


here, we have twilight(start times around 5:30 pm) Midnight (around 10:30pm) and sunrise ( around 3 AM)

just different terms for different regions

I've been a loader on midnight, primary sort on midnight, local sort on midnight/sunrise, preloader on midnight/sunrise, clerk on twilight/midnight/sunrise

preloaders here start during midnight and continue on during sunrise... boxline sort starts on twilight here... cages are pretty full when I return to building

 

[brownmonster]

funny you've never heard of it, if you look at the online applications for UPS, it states the shifts/times on the website google it... lol


here, we have twilight(start times around 5:30 pm) Midnight (around 10:30pm) and sunrise ( around 3 AM)

just different terms for different regions

I've been a loader on midnight, primary sort on midnight, local sort on midnight/sunrise, preloader on midnight/sunrise, clerk on twilight/midnight/sunrise

preloaders here start during midnight and continue on during sunrise... boxline sort starts on twilight here... cages are pretty full when I return to building

Boxline? Ours go right from the trailers onto the belt and the pre-loaders grab what belongs to them. Allegedly.

 

[OptimusPrime]

Boxline? Ours go right from the trailers onto the belt and the pre-loaders grab what belongs to them. Allegedly.

The boxline is a rotisserie of metal cages. Colors and stacks. So say my route is one "middle green". The cages are three high. So it's the one in the middle, and if it's colored green. Typically belt preloads are in the backwoods.

 

[wayfair]

Boxline? Ours go right from the trailers onto the belt and the pre-loaders grab what belongs to them. Allegedly.

I'll post a pic tomorrow

 

[Brownslave688]

Preload is a shift as far as I know. Also never heard it called it sunrise before. All depends on the region or center I guess.

 

['Lord Brown's bidding']

A package car loader is just a "loader", not a "pre-loader".


If my memory serves me correct, "pre-load actually refers to the 11pm-3am shift, because it sets up the main loading of the package car operation, which takes place from 4-8am. The latter shift I remember being called the "Load", hence the name "PRE-Load".

Doc, not sure how the boxline in your bldg could be charged with packages for delivery the following day when you get back to the bldg that evening. The primary focus of the Twi unload and sort operations are to take in the pickups from that day's operation, get them loaded onto outbound trailers and on their way. The belts in the facility will be running TO the trailers, not away from them. Also, the metro belts will be running (the belts that serve as the walkways for loading package cars).

 

['Lord Brown's bidding']

Since the preload and load only happen during the early morning hours-in contrast with sort, ramp, and hub operations, which can happen during multiple time periods-I guess previously there was no need for a time descriptor. "Sunrise" sounds like something new to help potential applicants understand just when they will be loading.

 

[barnyard]

It would appear that petty is the upstate know it all amongst part timers.

 

[Macbrother]

A package car loader is just a "loader", not a "pre-loader".

If my memory serves me correct, "pre-load actually refers to the 11pm-3am shift, because it sets up the main loading of the package car operation, which takes place from 4-8am. The latter shift I remember being called the "Load", hence the name "PRE-Load".

Our center only has two shifts, preload (4:30-8:30am) and local sort (4:30-10:00pm)

But yes, amongst both of those shifts you are going to have loaders, unloaders, clerk, shifters, surepost, smalls, pickoff, etc. Really just sounds like an issue of semantics here, honestly. People at different centers call stuff different things.

 

[Bagels]

Preload is a shift as far as I know. Also never heard it called it sunrise before. All depends on the region or center I guess.

A package car loader is just a "loader", not a "pre-loader". If my memory serves me correct, "pre-load actually refers to the 11pm-3am shift, because it sets up the main loading of the package car operation, which takes place from 4-8am. The latter shift I remember being called the "Load", hence the name "PRE-Load".

UPS uses different terminology for its shifts. For example, the evening sort (in which packages picked up that day are removed from package cars, then loaded onto trailers) is referred to as the reload, local sort and twilight.

I don't know where the phrase "preload" comes from, but both UPS and FedEx refer to most of the shifts (in which loaders load package cars with deliveries for that day) as preload.

 

[Debraen]

...yet we have people on unemployment who could fill these jobs and receive reduced benefits to supplement the difference...

I'm one of those people you speak of, and unfortunately, working the season at UPS is actually putting me in worse financial distress. Unemployment doesn't "supplement the difference." It pays only for those days not worked up to four days. Doesn't matter if you only work 5 hours at $8.50 as a helper or loader. If you work four days, unemployment doesn't pay you anything at all. SO if I DON'T work I get $392 a week on unemployment insurance that I've paid into for the past 35 years. If I work part-time, on-call at UPS I make $212.50. And that's if I work all five days, which hasn't happened yet. If I work four days I make $170 that week from UPS and unemployment pays NOTHING. Work one day and unemployment pays 3/4 your full rate, two days gives you 1/2 your full rate, 3 days gives you 1/4 your full rate. No matter what I do, I'm losing money by working.

 

[menotyou]

I worked 'pre-load' and loaded cars. My shift was 3:00am to 9:30am(potential hours you might have to work). We call it preload, btw. Our evening sort is from 4:30pm to 10:30pm(potential hours) and we call it metro. We have no 11pm to 3am shift.

 

[Bagels]

I'm one of those people you speak of, and unfortunately, working the season at UPS is actually putting me in worse financial distress. Unemployment doesn't "supplement the difference." It pays only for those days not worked up to four days. Doesn't matter if you only work 5 hours at $8.50 as a helper or loader. If you work four days, unemployment doesn't pay you anything at all. SO if I DON'T work I get $392 a week on unemployment insurance that I've paid into for the past 35 years. If I work part-time, on-call at UPS I make $212.50. And that's if I work all five days, which hasn't happened yet. If I work four days I make $170 that week from UPS and unemployment pays NOTHING. Work one day and unemployment pays 3/4 your full rate, two days gives you 1/2 your full rate, 3 days gives you 1/4 your full rate. No matter what I do, I'm losing money by working.

UpstateNYUPSer is correct that in SOME states, one can make additional monies by working as a driver helper + supplementing it with reduced unemployment. It's designed to incentivize people to get a job. Of course, sitting on your butt the length of unemployment will hurt your chances of re-entering the job market, anyway, so that alone should be enough to get a job.

Nonetheless, you never "paid into" unemployment insurance. Your employer has (and it's certainly more of a tax/burden on the employee rather than the employee) and the amounts will vary, but in my state it ranges from $50-$300 per employee per year (higher number applies to higher claims). People drawing unemployment for the full cycle (and not the extended cycle) will take out more than what will ever be paid on their behalf. Not to be nit-picky but just a pet peeve of mine...