UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technology?!!

[brownmonster]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

If I was Joe Public I would be saying "Saved 63 million miles? Weren't they paying any attention before? You would think a company doing this for so long would have been alot more efficient the last 100 years."

 

[705red]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

What we need is someone with stones like Ron Carey had to hold a press conference from the Teamsters and explain to the public and the share holders at what expense cutting those miles have on the employee and what UPS is saying is all a PR spin.

Example

Yes UPS cut 63 million miles, but at the same time 57,000 drivers missed at least one of their kids birthdays because the kids were in bed when he/she got home. During that same time frame the hourly employees at UPS missed over 1 million little league games that their child played in, that equates to over 3 million base hits missed, 97,000 strike outs pitched by their child and 1001 walk off home runs that they had to watch video, by word of mouth or text. All while their center managemnt team made sure thye didnt miss a single pitch.

That doesnt include the amount of money that UPS spent on grievances for excessive over time, that doesnt include the amount of money spent on workman comp, Dr visits for injuries that happened due to fatigue and being over worked. No where did UPS mention the constant harassment that they attempt to use on their work force when they disagree with anything or they question some really stupid decisions.

What UPS saved in gas wasnt due to saving the enviroment its about pleasing 10% of the share holders who never worked a day in their lives at UPS. If UPS wants to save money than should start honoring the contract they agreed to. They could save billions per year just be following what they have agreed to and eliminate their Labor Dept which spends so much time on disagreeing with the employees grievances only to spend millions and millions per year on attorneys to arbitrate cases that generally go in favor of the UPS employees anyways.

Please feel free to add your input, none of these numbers are scientific but i put more weight into them than what IE has to say and im just guessing.

 

[upssalesguy]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Salesguy,

If you want to see horrible positions, get out of the Ivory Tower and ride with drivers for a week. Oh, thats right, our manager is off by 5:00 most days.

Our customers are fed up with different drivers every day, different delivery times every day and having two delivery drivers show up at the door hours apart because no one can dispatch. Yeah, we must be saving a ton.

No one CARES if we pick them up in a 15 minute window-yet Atlanta does the happy dance over this issue. The customers WANT a dependable delivery time, preferably as early as possible. Drivers are now disciplined for blowing a commit time if the customer calls us and NEEDS a later pickup time.

You and Atlanta have no clue as to what CUSTOMER SERVICE is. Customer Service went away when United Parcel SERVICE was taken off of the side of the trucks. It only SEEMS to be whatever the flavor of the month is from above. Does anyone EVER get on the street up your way?

My building has drivers disciplined weekly for "production", yet not one member of management can demonstrate how to perform at "acceptable" levels without skipping lunch ( which is against the law) or not having accidents ( my division is through the roof on Tier 3's). One supervisor himself just had an accident- while the supervisor was driving-and there is now an injured hourly employee on light duty -and THERE IS NO POLICE REPORT. The supervisor STILL HAS HIS JOB! Show me a driver that would still be employed under these circumstances.

You want fairness? Treat your employees right. You want results that are real and not on paper for the public? Take care of YOUR customers and treat them right. THEN YOUR COMPANY WILL GROW! UPS is in a full blown shrink right now!

I truly hope that our exalted CEO enjoys his massive raise again this year- while we have drivers laid off-and are losing customers-and good employees that GREW this company.

I apologize for the rant, but YOU GUYS DONT GET IT!

hey buddy, thanks for all those words.

BUT. i'm the guy that has to make the pickup times work with our customers. I am on road everyday and **** in the same bathroom you do. no ivory towers except in atlanta.

if YOU don't like your job, quit.

and it's my experience with the customers that ship enough to actually move the meter - they want the latest time as possible and if that is out of the ordinary, they need to follow up with the center team, or call their salesguy. it shouldnt be a drivers call....but your have to know, I think it's 100% screwed up if you get discaplined for taking care of the customer.

 

[HEFFERNAN]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

If i went to the news and told them I was a 12 yr veteran driver who made 10,000 more than I did last year half way through the year. What would the stock holders think ?



THAT'S RIGHT ! IT'S ALL PERSPECTIVE !!

They would say, "That guy would make a good Mall Cop."

Hoak - You are a kool-aid drinking "Summer's Eve product"

Thanks for your insightful input !!

 

[browniehound]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

I bet if they added in all the miles that the supervisors drive shuttling missorts in their personal vehicles these numbers wouldn't be the same.

This was going to be my point but you beat me to it, Scratch. That number must be 'cooked' because all I've EVER observed from the loop plan is much too many unnecessary miles in the dispatch.

Just as one example is two UPS drivers in the same neighborhood at the same time (and we all know it happens on a daily basis all across the country) . Beside it making us look bad, who in their right mind would plan it this way?

Oh, that's right its the supervisor that has to make his stops per car goal. I guess as long is he does that it doesn't matter where he sends the trucks. Made the goal on paper but wasted many gallons of fuel in the process. How does these actions (which happen over and over again as WE ALL KNOW) add to the bottom line?

 

[YouKnowWhoIam]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Its all public relations b.s. You have to admit that it sounds good to the non-informed public.

Sure is,just like they "eliminated most left hand turns".....I make more lefts than rights!

 

[YouKnowWhoIam]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

hey buddy, thanks for all those words.

BUT. i'm the guy that has to make the pickup times work with our customers. I am on road everyday and **** in the same bathroom you do. no ivory towers except in atlanta.

if YOU don't like your job, quit.

and it's my experience with the customers that ship enough to actually move the meter - they want the latest time as possible and if that is out of the ordinary, they need to follow up with the center team, or call their salesguy. it shouldnt be a drivers call....but your have to know, I think it's 100% screwed up if you get discaplined for taking care of the customer.

I USED to like my job....now,NOT SO MUCH. And I wasnt the one screwing up a perfectly good route,dispatch and the likes. If your solution is quit if you dont like it,then UPS will lose 60-70 percent of its drivers. Sounds like you may be our next CEO with that helpful tidbit of advice.

 

[menotyou]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Maybe, if he doesn't like what the face of the company is saying, i.e. The Drivers, he should quit. Oh, wait. Then, no one be left to service our accounts. LOL!! I love when I make myself laugh out loud!!

 

[upssalesguy]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

I USED to like my job....now,NOT SO MUCH. And I wasnt the one screwing up a perfectly good route,dispatch and the likes. If your solution is quit if you dont like it,then UPS will lose 60-70 percent of its drivers. Sounds like you may be our next CEO with that helpful tidbit of advice.

what advice can I give someone that only looks at one side of an argument? you say screw up a good route - i equate that to you don't know the why behind the reasons things are being dispatched the way they are. that being said, if all the drivers were happy, this company would be broke.

so yeah, if you don't like it quit - others can be trained to do your job. it's not like we will have a now hiring sign out front.

 

[menotyou]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Don't you have a Saturday air driver you can nag?

 

[AZBrown]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Is it me or is everybody missing the headline that they avoided the miles, not saved them by driving 63 million miles less.
The headline itself sounds like smoke and mirrors. A quick read of it would imply that they drove 63 million less in 2010 than they did in 2009. Avoiding the miles sounds like they were never needed to be driven in the first place, as software would point out.

 

[menotyou]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

They can't say saved. That would be ammo that could be used later against them. They avoided putting those miles on trucks driven by union employees, only. That doesn't include sups, OMS, sales or their grandmother for all I know shuttling, delivering, picking up, ect., ect., ect.

 

[705red]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

Sales people dont put on many liles, they go to work and from the building to the donut shop back home. Now if UPS really want to save money they would cut the donut allowance!

 

[pretzel_man]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

I've said this before, but those are measurements that are easy to sell to a stockholder or joe public, both starving for $ucce$$ in the financial outlook. What's obviously hidden though, is the brewing discourse from employees on both sides of the aisle and good customers who routinely get a 2 hour later delivery time on Monday, Tuesday and Friday. Cutting routes looks like a great profitable plan, until the $#1t hits the dash fan. Oh wait, I forgot, my dash fan was removed. To increase profitability by eliminating non original equipment. Sorry, I know that was gratuitous.

UPS is now a public company. Its books are open to the SEC and investors ask very detailed questions. Go listen to the recording. They don't blindly listen to what is said.

UPS not only puts its finances at risk if it lies about these things, its a criminal matter as well.

Some on this board refuse to listen regardless of what is said. They have made up their mind regardless of any facts to the contrary.

First its said that SPC goals cause additional time and miles. Now the same people will say that the SPC goal and overdispatch is the reason for a miles reduction. (that part has some truth to it.)

Many here have a vested interest in making UPS and its management look incompetent and evil. Luckily, this is not the UPS that most people see every day.

I see the vast majority of UPSers that work hard and do their best every day. This includes management AND hourly. Our drivers are the best people anywhere. Period. And their managers are as well.

This is a hard job with more competition than ever before and lower margins. I admit that some management make very poor decisions. I admit that overdispatching does occur. However, many do a very good job.

Rather than make everything a fight, some will look at the entire picture. That is that UPS technology and UPS people improved the efficiency of the operation.

That's what the facts say.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

P-man, would you consider "saving" and "avoiding" to be one in the same for the purposes of this discussion?

 

[wornoutupser]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

hey buddy, thanks for all those words.

BUT. i'm the guy that has to make the pickup times work with our customers. I am on road everyday

The point is that it DOESNT work. I have two pickups that are 22 MILES apart with the same commit time. I have ADDED about 30 MORE miles a day just to do pickups because of cut runs.( And there is a run within a few miles of them) We just saw a customer service rep in our building for the first time in over 6 months- why are you being punished as an on-car?


and ****

in the same bathroom you do.

Cant say much to that one except watch out for the moldy ceiling tile that falls on the toilet once in a while from the leaking roof.

no ivory towers except in atlanta.

Try Central Florida.

if YOU don't like your job, quit.

If the experienced drivers that are holding this mess together quit-YOU would be the one out of a job ! No customers=no pay! I LOVE my job- its the COMPANY that I am afraid of!

and it's my experience with the customers that ship enough to actually move the meter

I have the largest international account in my building and UPS keeps screwing up their shipments. We refuse to refund them and it has always been OUR fault in Louisville. They are seriously considering Fed Ex and no one gives a crap above me.

- they want the latest time as possible and if that is out of the ordinary, they need to follow up with the center team

Good luck there

, or call their salesguy.

Seen one in 6 months



it shouldnt be a drivers call

It always is because our sups duck and cover behind the OMS on duty that wont make a decision on their own.


....but your have to know, I think it's 100% screwed up if you get discaplined for taking care of the customer.

Heck, I'll take you as MY boss with that attitude :=)

 

[pretzel_man]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

P-man, would you consider "saving" and "avoiding" to be one in the same for the purposes of this discussion?

Yes....

I think its a semantic thing....

Year to year, month to month, day to day, there are different amount of packages, stops and density.

You look at at last year and say, "If we did nothing how many miles would we have driven?"

That's hard to do. Often I use Stops per Mile for this.

If stops per mile go up, then had nothing changed, we have reduced miles?

There is no 100% accurate way to do this that I know of.

Assume that 20 drivers each drive 100 miles per day historically. Now if through many means (including over dispatching) we put the same number of stops into 19 drivers.

Even each of the 19 drivers added 3 or 4 miles, the center as a whole is down. Therfore, stops per mile are up....

So, reduced and avoided are really the same thing. I guess unless you could go back in time and run the same day again, avoided is the proper word.

 

[MC4YOU2]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

UPS is now a public company. Its books are open to the SEC and investors ask very detailed questions. Go listen to the recording. They don't blindly listen to what is said.UPS not only puts its finances at risk if it lies about these things, its a criminal matter as well.Some on this board refuse to listen regardless of what is said. They have made up their mind regardless of any facts to the contrary.First its said that SPC goals cause additional time and miles. Now the same people will say that the SPC goal and overdispatch is the reason for a miles reduction. (that part has some truth to it.)Many here have a vested interest in making UPS and its management look incompetent and evil. Luckily, this is not the UPS that most people see every day.I see the vast majority of UPSers that work hard and do their best every day. This includes management AND hourly. Our drivers are the best people anywhere. Period. And their managers are as well.This is a hard job with more competition than ever before and lower margins. I admit that some management make very poor decisions. I admit that overdispatching does occur. However, many do a very good job.Rather than make everything a fight, some will look at the entire picture. That is that UPS technology and UPS people improved the efficiency of the operation. That's what the facts say.

The facts you are speaking of are only the printed ones. I can tell you from personal experience, my facts and many of those who are speaking here on this topic, are based on real life. The customers are not happier simply because ups can prove effeciency, when the plan includes a later delivery time.The customers are not happy when their "go to" driver is working a mile away and they get a different driver every other day.This company lives and dies on the relationships it has with customers, and let me you, they are not happy that those are not tended to.

 

[pretzel_man]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

The facts you are speaking of are only the printed ones. I can tell you from personal experience, my facts and many of those who are speaking here on this topic, are based on real life. The customers are not happier simply because ups can prove effeciency, when the plan includes a later delivery time.The customers are not happy when their "go to" driver is working a mile away and they get a different driver every other day.This company lives and dies on the relationships it has with customers, and let me you, they are not happy that those are not tended to.

UPS has about 1.2 million regular pickup customers (I think)

About 8 milion delivery customers daily.

There are people whose job it is to survey those customers to find out their issues and needs.

Major concerns as I recall:

Damages
Ease of use
Cost

BTW, they continue to say that they love their drivers.

While I appreciate your opinion, I will listen to those that talk with the larger population.

This thread was about UPS reducing (avoiding) miles. That portion of the story is still true.

 

[tourists24]

Re: UPS AVOIDS DRIVING 63.5 MILLION MILES IN 2010...due to conservation and technolog

And thus,,, the ostrich will still put his head in the sand