Vacation Bidding?

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
Being that I have been given a hard time because people don't appreciate my positive outlook, I have a serious question that might have been covered months ago.

When bidding vacation, I know there are several different methods stations can take. Let the senior people bid ALL of their weeks before going to the next person. OR, let the senior person bid HALF of their weeks before going to the next person, then going back to the senior person to let him finish bidding. I know senior people like the first option and less senior like the second. How do your stations do your bidding?
 

MrFedEx

Engorged Member
Being that I have been given a hard time because people don't appreciate my positive outlook, I have a serious question that might have been covered months ago.

When bidding vacation, I know there are several different methods stations can take. Let the senior people bid ALL of their weeks before going to the next person. OR, let the senior person bid HALF of their weeks before going to the next person, then going back to the senior person to let him finish bidding. I know senior people like the first option and less senior like the second. How do your stations do your bidding?

We tried your second scenario, and so many senior people complained that they went back to your first scenario. I agree with the second one because it's almost impossible for anyone with less than 20 years (at least at my location) to get a summer vacation or a prime week.

A lot of people take their family vacations during February, when we get a 50% discount a Splish Splash water parks, but only the Buffalo, Toronto, and International Falls, MN locations. It's a great perk.
 

El Morado Diablo

Well-Known Member
Our station handled vacation bidding like this:

Round 1

25+ year employees (5 weeks) bid all of their vacation
Everyone else bid all but one week of their vacation time.

Doesn't seem fair to the 20-24 year employees who also have 5 weeks of vacation. They should be able to bid all of their vacation like the 25+ year employees. They don't split the people with 4 weeks (or 3 weeks) into different groups based on their years of service.

What really drives me crazy is that we have added swings and have more couriers than we've ever had yet they haven't increased the number of people that are allowed on vacation at the same time. Meanwhile, LWOP is offered nearly every single day of the week.
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
Why do you want to know? You already said you don't care about anyone else.
Just curious. You are right. I don't care if you get the vacation you want or not. As long as I get mine, that is my only concern. Why worry yourself about other peoples problems. Everyone has their own problems to worry about. I don't expect others to worry about mine and don't expect me to worry about yours. That leads to stress and bitterness. I have neither of those and many on here are filled with both. Selfish? Yep. But I am stress free and enjoying life. Not many on here can say that.
 

Operational needs

Virescit Vulnere Virtus
Ditto. My entire station bids all their FULL weeks on the first round. 2nd round goes to anyone with partial weeks. 3rd round is for floating holidays and personal days for everybody.
I think mine does the same. I couldn't remember what happened in rounds 2 & 3. I never bid those rounds, except the day after Thanksgiving.
 

McFeely

Huge Member
The good thing about the high turnover in my station is that even though I've only been with the company <5 years I'm already like in the top 1/3rd in terms of seniority.
 

outtatime

Well-Known Member
What used to bug me (with about 5 years seniority) about the 20 year+ guys bidding all theirs at once was not being able to get a vacation until October. They would take 3 weeks in the summer and screwed the other people. It meant not being able to take a vacation with your young kids in the summer.
 

dezguy

Well-Known Member
What used to bug me (with about 5 years seniority) about the 20 year+ guys bidding all theirs at once was not being able to get a vacation until October. They would take 3 weeks in the summer and screwed the other people. It meant not being able to take a vacation with your young kids in the summer.
Same here. My kids were practically grown up by the time I was able to get 1 week off in the summer because guys with kids who were moved out hogged all the prime vacation.

Now that I get my choice of prime vacation, I make sure I leave some for the younger guys below me. I'm not going to be an ass just because the guys before me decided they didn't care about anyone but themselves.
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
Same here. My kids were practically grown up by the time I was able to get 1 week off in the summer because guys with kids who were moved out hogged all the prime vacation.

Now that I get my choice of prime vacation, I make sure I leave some for the younger guys below me. I'm not going to be an ass just because the guys before me decided they didn't care about anyone but themselves.
How do you decide what deserving less senior person gets his wish? If 3 people want the same week and only 1 can have it, you still have 2 upset people. The less senior person is always gonna get leftovers. That is just the way it is. I sympathize with less senior people and their vacation dilemma but I am taking my weeks when I want. I go out of town to specific events on most of my vacations. I am not gonna give up my event because someone has something they want to do. That isnt fair to my family that they cant go somewhere we want to go. When I started, I got the leftovers, and now I get the prime weeks. Selfish? Maybe. But if my family wants to go to an event and I can get that time off, we are going.
 

dezguy

Well-Known Member
How do you decide what deserving less senior person gets his wish? If 3 people want the same week and only 1 can have it, you still have 2 upset people. The less senior person is always gonna get leftovers. That is just the way it is. I sympathize with less senior people and their vacation dilemma but I am taking my weeks when I want. I go out of town to specific events on most of my vacations. I am not gonna give up my event because someone has something they want to do. That isnt fair to my family that they cant go somewhere we want to go. When I started, I got the leftovers, and now I get the prime weeks. Selfish? Maybe. But if my family wants to go to an event and I can get that time off, we are going.
Yes, I'm sure that everything you have going on only happens to take place during prime vacation times. Give me a break.

I'm only one person. I can't help every guy or gal below me but if I can allow even one guy/gal with a young family to take a trip together or just be together for one week in the summer, I'll do it because I know what it was like to not be able to spend a week off with my kids.

I personally think it's ridiculous that some people can't get one measly week off in the summer to go away with their family and that, in some cases it takes years to even get one week of summer vacation off, meanwhile, others can take 3 or 4 weeks. Never, anywhere else I have ever worked at, has it been that way.
 

outtatime

Well-Known Member
Yes, I'm sure that everything you have going on only happens to take place during prime vacation times. Give me a break.

I'm only one person. I can't help every guy or gal below me but if I can allow even one guy/gal with a young family to take a trip together or just be together for one week in the summer, I'll do it because I know what it was like to not be able to spend a week off with my kids.

I personally think it's ridiculous that some people can't get one measly week off in the summer to go away with their family and that, in some cases it takes years to even get one week of summer vacation off, meanwhile, others can take 3 or 4 weeks. Never, anywhere else I have ever worked at, has it been that way.
There is no reason at all that every employee cannot get one week vacation in the summer if they want it. After that, let the more senior employees bid a second or third week if available. It's little things like that that boost morale and might possibly retain the less senior employees, which is exactly the ones FedEx is looking to keep.
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
Yes, I'm sure that everything you have going on only happens to take place during prime vacation times. Give me a break.

I'm only one person. I can't help every guy or gal below me but if I can allow even one guy/gal with a young family to take a trip together or just be together for one week in the summer, I'll do it because I know what it was like to not be able to spend a week off with my kids.

I personally think it's ridiculous that some people can't get one measly week off in the summer to go away with their family and that, in some cases it takes years to even get one week of summer vacation off, meanwhile, others can take 3 or 4 weeks. Never, anywhere else I have ever worked at, has it been that way.
Never said everything I do is during prime. In fact I don't normally do very many summer vacations and I avoid spring break and fall break weeks IF I CAN. But if my family wants to go to a concert or a football game vacation and a less senior employee wants to go to Disney that week, I am not gonna tell my family we are not going because I want to let a person below me have that week. Next week is the Desert Trip concert with McCartney and the Stones. Then in November it is a Arizona Cardinals football vacation. They don't schedule those events around my schedule. I want off when those events happen. If I trump a lessor employee by taking my family there, that is just the way it is.

Tell me if your wife or partner wanted to go see the Stones or McCartney and a 1 year employee wanted to go to Splash Mountain. Are you gonna tell your wife she cant go so the other guy can. I don't think so.
 

dezguy

Well-Known Member
Where did I say anything about senior couriers not taking the vacation weeks they want? I believe I was speaking about senior couriers taking 4 weeks summer vacation, leaving nothing for less tenured employees when they could take 2 or 3 weeks instead, allowing less tenured guys with young families time off to spend with their family.

I take weeks off I want too but I'm not taking all the prime time just to spite people, which seems to be the m.o. with most senior guys I've ever worked with, here.
 

Operational needs

Virescit Vulnere Virtus
Yes, I'm sure that everything you have going on only happens to take place during prime vacation times. Give me a break.

I'm only one person. I can't help every guy or gal below me but if I can allow even one guy/gal with a young family to take a trip together or just be together for one week in the summer, I'll do it because I know what it was like to not be able to spend a week off with my kids.

I personally think it's ridiculous that some people can't get one measly week off in the summer to go away with their family and that, in some cases it takes years to even get one week of summer vacation off, meanwhile, others can take 3 or 4 weeks. Never, anywhere else I have ever worked at, has it been that way.
I'll usually take a week in the summer, the week after Christmas and Spring Break. The rest of the weeks I try not to schedule. After my daughter graduates, I'll give up Spring Break. I'd rather someone with kids in school get that. The week after Christmas, I will take for the rest of my time at Fedex. I need that week to rest and relax after Peak.
 

dezguy

Well-Known Member
I'll usually take a week in the summer, the week after Christmas and Spring Break. The rest of the weeks I try not to schedule. After my daughter graduates, I'll give up Spring Break. I'd rather someone with kids in school get that. The week after Christmas, I will take for the rest of my time at Fedex. I need that week to rest and relax after Peak.
It's nice to see there are others out there who aren't just thinking about themselves all the time.

Maybe if more of us looked at what's good for everybody, instead of the I got mine so screw everyone else attitude, we could see some real change around FedEx.
 
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