pretzel_man
Well-Known Member
Last week our building management had a meeting with the stewards to explain the Telematics system and how it would be implemented.
One interesting tidbit of information that sort of got lost in all the discussion about bulkhead doors and seatbelts....is that the system will also monitor the amount of time taken at each stop and will indicate when the driver is "overallowed" for that particular stop, based upon number of pieces delivered, area allowance etc.
In other words....your sup will be able to sit at his desk and view your progress throughout the day on his computer monitor, taking note of any particular stops that you were "overallowed" at, so that you can be questioned about them later.
A good mental excercise for any driver who his called into the office to explain his Telematics readout...is to assume that his management team already knows the answers to the questions that they are about to ask him. The driver should avoid the temptation to "fill in the blanks" and tell them what he thinks the right answer is. "I dont recall" is probably going to be the best and safest answer to any questions posed. Never forget that a wrong answer that can be interpreted as dishonest may result in immediate termination, since dishonesty is a "cardinal infraction" that falls outside of the progressive disciplinary system.
Telematics is being touted primarily as a tool to enhance safety and assist in automotive maintainence. I can buy the part about maintainence, but I have difficulty believing that a company that would intentionally delete 3-point seatbelts from its vehicles has any real concern for the safety and health of its employees. My opinion is that Telematics is primarily a system to enhance production and allow a "virtual supervisor" to monitor his employees in a more intensive and efficient manner.
Sober,
I'm not sure if you're just giving information and advice or if you are concerned.
It seems to me that the production concerns should be fairly irrelevent. First, the union doesn't recognize time standards. As far as someone being overallowed at a stop, unless they are doing things improperly, I would think your stance is that it took what it took.
I would also think you could use this to your advantage. For instance, if telematics shows you overallowed at a stop, you can then question the accuracy of that measurement with very precise information. I would think that your position would be "if the driver is following methods, I guess your measurement is wrong".
On the other hand, if a driver is taking advantage of the company, I would want that corrected. I think there is nothing wrong with eliminating that type of behavior.
Finally, as someone already pointed out, the company had information about time at a stop since the mid 90's. It was the SPARCS system and is still in use today. Telematics just makes this information a little more precise.
P-Man