Given his skills as a corporate apologist I'm starting to think that VT has himself made a few trips to the Fedex Mind Control And Reeducation Academy.
Are you saying they're hiding profits? Look at their total payroll costs as percentage of their total revenue. Then look at their profit and show me how they're going to increase pay enough to give couriers comparable to UPS pay(and benefits). It's not a matter of not wanting them to or letting them slide, etc. Out of profit comes dividends and other expenditures.
It comes down to how freight is moved. FedEx became more profitable after establishing Ground which in spite of charging less than Express is much more profitable due to trucking freight rather than flying it. FedEx Express is never going to pay like UPS because of its much higher overhead of flying freight. In order for it to pay like UPS it will have to operate like UPS. Get rid of Ground, have everyone in mostly big stepvans in concentrated areas, truck most freight. If you can show us how they can get around that then take it to FedEx and show them. You'd be the first one to figure it out.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
I don't buy any of their BS excuses. Poor Fred would be living hand to mouth etc. blah, blah, blah.
They can afford to pay pilots an excellent wage and benefits they could do the same for couriers too.
And shall we discuss the overblown fat-ass salaries the upper crust is making?
Where's the money coming from? They can't print it.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
From all the thousands of employees that got screwed over pay raises over the course of many years. Sound familiar?
And how exactly right here right now is that going to pay enough to give couriers UPS comparable pay and benefits? Last figures I saw, and that was some time ago, FedEx was a $56 Billion revenue company and almost half of that went to payroll. The next biggest expenditure was fuel. After that and everything else was paid for back then they had a bit over a billion in profit. If percentages are roughly the same now, but more profitable due to Ground, and you're wanting to top out everyone much faster with UPS comparable pay, you're probably looking at close to $15 Billion extra a year, maybe more. And that's just for Express employees. What about their having to pay more over at Ground to attract drivers too? And we aren't even talking yet about much better benefits at Express. I get the anger. They ran over us to get the money to build up Ground. But let's be honest, the money isn't there with the company as is. The company playing games with the new pay plan sure isn't helping either.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
Actually it's yours. You're never going to get paid what you want at FedEx(aren't you retired?).
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
Yes I am.
Before that I was topped out for 17 years.
So how is meeting FedEx union scale payroll my problem?
Fred's Myth
Nonhyphenated American
More work with fewer employees, to start. Consolidation of opcos would be mandatory for the prerequisite efficiencies.
Elimination of many non-revenue producing employees (management).
Eliminating non-productive hourlies.
Set the bar high, from the top, down.
Eliminate parameters that interfere with on time delivery of all services.
Safety tolerances near zero.
To justify UPS wage/benefits, you have to match their work standards.
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
And don’t forget, eliminate all engineers and meaningless positions (like Dano’s.)
Fred's Myth
Nonhyphenated American
That's a natural Step 1. Retrospect reveals that not investing the hourly in the process lead to a steady decline in productivity capabilities.
Since you're retired it's not, except you're never going to be happy with what they're doing.
Eliminating non-productive hourlies. OK, then replace them with whom? Even back when FedEx paid reasonable and benefits were decent a lot of employees skated. Saw it everywhere I went.
While what you wrote would certainly help the company, can you eek out enough to get you to UPS pay and benefits, or is it enough to insure the current pay plan while the company crows to Wall Street that they've managed to increase profit a few more billion? Because without a union the company isn't going to just give it to employees, and more work without commensurate compensation will lead to more turnover.
To you they're meaningless and some may be. But the company isn't creating positions just to carry people. They've had buyouts before with more work shouldered by those who remained. Ask those people if their positions are meaningless, if they just sit around all day doing little.
Fred's Myth
Nonhyphenated American
Now you're making excuses, like Dano.
When I first came to Express in the mid 90's, I was astonished at the wasteful system in place, at least at the station level. Management took the easy road, and blamed the courier, when there was major room for improvement EVERYWHERE.
The same situation still exists because the mindset isn't to perfect the most efficient system of delivering cardboard on time. It's "how can we get this done and keep the hourlies from unionizing?"
How to stave off unionization? Good pay, excellent benefits, time and motion training, and incentives for performance.THAT'S where upper management has failed.
Do Incentives Work? Landmark Study Unveiled
One of the most comprehensive studies of the $27 billion incentive industry reveals that in many cases, incentives do motivate employees.
- Incentive programs aimed at individual workers increase performance 27 percent.
- Programs aimed at teams increase performance 45 percent.
- Incentive programs have an equal, positive impact on both quality and quantity goals.
- Incentive programs structured with employee input work best; however only 23 percent of incentive systems were selected with employee input.
- Long-term incentives are more powerful than short term (44 percent gain vs. 20 percent gain).
Cactus
Just telling it like it is
Of course they’re gonna say their positions aren’t meaningless until they’re blue in the face. Who wants to lose their cushy position? Duh.
But they don't have to stave off unionization because it's nearly impossible to unionize. That study only applies to companies where it is possible. And employees willing to work much harder have already left for greener pastures. It's been a long time since FedEx was trying to hire quality candidates. Now it's hire whoever isn't bright enough to ask around about FedEx and believes what the hiring mgr tells him.Now you're making excuses, like Dano.
When I first came to Express in the mid 90's, I was astonished at the wasteful system in place, at least at the station level. Management took the easy road, and blamed the courier, when there was major room for improvement EVERYWHERE.
The same situation still exists because the mindset isn't to perfect the most efficient system of delivering cardboard on time. It's "how can we get this done and keep the hourlies from unionizing?"
How to stave off unionization? Good pay, excellent benefits, time and motion training, and incentives for performance.THAT'S where upper management has failed.
Some interesting findings contained in the study include:Do Incentives Work? Landmark Study Unveiled
One of the most comprehensive studies of the $27 billion incentive industry reveals that in many cases, incentives do motivate employees.www.ehstoday.com
- Incentive programs aimed at individual workers increase performance 27 percent.
- Programs aimed at teams increase performance 45 percent.
- Incentive programs have an equal, positive impact on both quality and quantity goals.
- Incentive programs structured with employee input work best; however only 23 percent of incentive systems were selected with employee input.
- Long-term incentives are more powerful than short term (44 percent gain vs. 20 percent gain).
I see a company that runs really lean to impress Wall Street with increased profits. You see a company that hires willy nilly to give people cushy jobs earning big salaries doing little. There may be some executive's relatives in such positions FAIK but highly doubtful you're going to pull out an extra $10-$15 billion. Wishful thinking.
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