So as a UPS employee I naturally think that FedEx sucks!
Wow, they must really brain-wash you guys over there or, you're fairly new and all "Rah-Rah. Go big brown!". As an Eggspress employee, I get along great with all the UPS drivers in my area. Heck, I've even helped them carry freight into and out of places if they needed a hand and I was going right in or, right out the same door anyway. Heck, those guys and girls are doing twice the work I am on a slow day for them.
I tell my customers "If it's big and heavy, and you don't care when it gets there, ship it ground or UPS. If it's important, ship it Express". I have no ill feelings toward UPS just because I work for Express. I do have an issue with the USPS, I think those guys suck-diddly-uck.
Yesterday though I was inundated by two separate customers on how they view FedEx. Lets just say that it was not flattering for FDX.
Big deal. For every anti-Fedex (air or ground) story you've heard, I've heard just as many anti-UPS stories. To each their own. You know what I see a lot? Toner cartridges going out with a pre-paid UPS return label sitting right at the front desk of a businesses. I see these boxes sit there for days. I even ask the people "Didn't UPS come in here today?" Answer: "Yup, but the driver said they were too busy to take the box". Or, some other excuse like "They'll get it next time".
I don't give a damn who ships with who. It is weird, though, how people are definitely divided. I guess TV advertising really does work on the general public's psyche.
The first lives up in the mountains and she said she always requests UPS but a shipment earlier in the week slipped through on the FedEx Ground truck. Apparently the driver left all seven of her boxes out at the gate in the rain and mud. If that was not enough the boxes also were completely damaged (her words). Now her gate does open and you can drive in to the house with no problems.
That is a sad story. All I can say is maybe that driver didn't know that the gate opened. Maybe that driver was a swing/fill-in/temp. Was there a code to the gate?
One thing I notice about X vs. UPS (the following may not be true at every sta. but, it is at mine) is that X keeps the same guy, on the same route, in the same truck, until that guy elects to leave that route. What that means is that I've been on my current route for 3 yrs. I know what door to go to, who has dogs, and where to put, or not put packages. Heck I even know where some people live and work on my route and if I have something going to their house that needs a sig., I will usually bring it to their work if I'm going by there later anyway. What do you thing about that Brown? I must be one hell of a Purple Promise dude, huh? I've got this big purple cape with a giant letter X on the back. Bah ha ha. Who cares, I'm just trying to get the damn package off the damn truck so I don't have to go back to the same damn place tomorrow.
With UPS it seems like they will put a different guy on a different route on a whim. I've lived in my house for about 6 yrs. and have had at least 4 different UPS guys. All I'm saying is the more you know your area and stops, the better the performance will be due to repetition and route knowledge.
Second lady just moved into the golf course I deliver from Kentucky. She couldn't stop saying what a great company UPS is compared to FedEx (music to my ears), but one thing she said really hit me. She said that our level of professionalism is unmatched and that we are even great with the kids and always have time to interact. She even said "it's as if you guys are trained on how to interact with children".
Again, big deal. Here's a story I get a lot with people with dogs. I show up and their dog is eagerly awaiting me to pull a treat out of my pocket. I don't carry dog treats. The owner's will usually jokingly say something like "Oh, the UPS guy gives the dog a treat". I tell them "Yeah, I'm sorry, I don't carry treats because when they're left in the truck at night, you get mice in your truck".
Also, I'm not responsible for feeding your dog. And God forbid, I give your dog a treat and found out later, after he's dead, that the dog was lactose intolerant or something and I gave him Milk Bone with out asking you first. Also, if you touch a dog and it bites you, guess what? X gives you a warning letter for "committing an un-safe act". That's no joke, I've seen it happen.
And for kids, I don't have any but, I interact real well with them. Was this something we were taught to do in our 2 weeks of courier school? No. (Do they even put UPS drivers through a school?) My big thing is if some little kid answers the door I'll say that I'm FedEx and I have a pkg for so-and-so. Then I'll say something like "Can you carry it for me?" Then, if I have time, I'll ask them if they can write their name on the screen for me. Parents get a big kick outta this. I even had a guy say that he'll use X from now on just because of that. I better call 800-Go-Fedex and turn them on to this massive profit-making idea, huh?
You should try it Brown, oh wait, writing on those boards is like trying to carve your initials into a picnic table with a butter knife, you best not steal that idea from me.
Well In both cases I inserted my point of view, and this is what it is. FDX does not have a business plan built around service. They just want the stuff delivered and thats it. There Ground and H.D. drivers are not even employees and in most cases don't get paid by the hour so there is no incentive to take more time for anything. As far as Express drivers they seem over extended by ever widening delivery areas and also don't have the time.So maybe I'm wrong but I highly doubt it.
Everyone is entitled to their view. And, you can tell customers whatever you want. Heck, even I tell people that Ground and Air are not the same and that ground guys are independent. Does it suck for the customer that I have to tell them that that's why I'm not picking up their ground package? Yes. Is this a major flaw with X's operating? Yes. Is there anything I can do about it? No. Do I take that package sometimes just to make is easy on the customer? Yes.
I've learned that working for a global company has it's drawbacks, one of them is that nothing you think that will improve the company will ever get implemented. They have over-paid engineers to do that. X hired you from the neck down.
Bottom line is, Brown, while we are a bunch of X guys on the "Brown Cafe", I don't think we need any threads that bash one company or the other. We all know there are good drivers and there are bad drivers.
