ABF | Biz already leaving due to contract...

Canary, I have to laugh about how you stick to your line of thinking that FedEx ships cheaper than ABF. One of our drivers drove over to your Phoenix yard just the other day to pick up a large item he paid to ship via you guys. Cost half what it would to ship it FedEx Freight. He picked it up on the way home from work, in uniform. Your crew laughed pretty heartily over that.

ST

Well, Brother,.......I appreciate your enlightening me as far as the disparity in freight rates go.

All I am doing is spouting what’s commonly thought of as “conventional wisdom”....that a non-Union carrier simply must be cheaper,.......rate-wise,......than a Union carrier....

It gladdens my heart to hear that ain’t the case......sometimes......

Kind of blows a hole in most corporate arguments.......

And........FedEx is still making a profit......
 
Canary, I have to laugh about how you stick to your line of thinking that FedEx ships cheaper than ABF. One of our drivers drove over to your Phoenix yard just the other day to pick up a large item he paid to ship via you guys. Cost half what it would to ship it FedEx Freight. He picked it up on the way home from work, in uniform. Your crew laughed pretty heartily over that.

ST
What no employee discount at FedEx?

Well we don't get one either... at least that's what I was told when I asked (hey the manager I asked wasn't the sharpest stick ok..lol).

Freight rates vary greatly depending on freight balances in different lanes. One carrier might be heavy in freight coming out of say the southeast where another might be really light and discount freight going that way so as not to haul empty trailers and offset the cost a little.
So saying one is cheaper than the other based on one shipment....or even 100 shipments... is pretty myopic.
 
I don't know if you're a troll, a company plant, or an absolute :censored: idiot. But either way, I don't like you.

Have a great day. I don't mean that at all, by the way.
old Turncoat has told us that he is from Millbrook, AL (Mayberry) and works at an unsupervised terminal with 5 drivers...how sweet is that?
Move a few pallets around the dock on o/t, sweep a little... and get all the o/t you want...no DA*N wonder he wants anything the company throws out...as he says..."just sayin' "
 
Sounds like FedEx really could pay a little better.....Canary could probably help ya'll out with that....our Union could use some more membership and that could help us all out
 
old Turncoat has told us that he is from Millbrook, AL (Mayberry) and works at an unsupervised terminal with 5 drivers...how sweet is that?
Move a few pallets around the dock on o/t, sweep a little... and get all the o/t you want...no DA*N wonder he wants anything the company throws out...as he says..."just sayin' "
I just practically ride over to the terminal every night, M-F take a little ride over to ATL and they drop $1600/wk in the bank on Friday plus benefits....worse part is all the whinning I have to hear about how sweet my gig is, I just smile and tell em' keep paying ya dues, yours will come one day....but if the old Union puts a strike on....don't worry about ole' TurnCoat....I hear the fish have started biting and he's gotta a few coins saved up. He's going to the Alabama River and he will bring some fish by the picket line....wait...probably won't have much need for a picket line at a 5 man pony shed....We'll probably take turns watching that locked gate, these other guys like to fish too
 
I had a delivery yesterday to an account that was also using us for some o/b., I was told that since our contract expires soon, they wouldn't use us for a while because they didn't want their products tied up..and until the contract was "settled" and not "extended", the wouldn't use us..they also contacted all of their accounts that even ship prepaid to them...It seems like our competitors are driving this home...anyone else run into this...it is only going to pickup soon....competitors using this to their advantage

Interesting point, customers have no patience when it comes to this stuff. No shipping manager wants to be fired because the carrier they chose is not servicing them due to a strike. That is career *******.

Just a hint of a strike would cause a stampede of customers away. No one can risk that even in this environment. They have a competitor with the lowest wages in the business, filthy leased facilities, unsafe rolling garbage for equipment and sales folks who boast they have the lowest operating costs in the industry. Easy picking for a desperate competitor....

I think it was Red Star or some one else who went on some type of a strike and in 1 day they were shut down. Brilliant...

It does not take long for the stampede of customers to cut off a carrier and put them out of business.....
 
I just practically ride over to the terminal every night, M-F take a little ride over to ATL and they drop $1600/wk in the bank on Friday plus benefits....worse part is all the whinning I have to hear about how sweet my gig is, I just smile and tell em' keep paying ya dues, yours will come one day....but if the old Union puts a strike on....don't worry about ole' TurnCoat....I hear the fish have started biting and he's gotta a few coins saved up. He's going to the Alabama River and he will bring some fish by the picket line....wait...probably won't have much need for a picket line at a 5 man pony shed....We'll probably take turns watching that locked gate, these other guys like to fish too
I already posted my opinion of you on the other thread 2018 Contract Time
 
FedEx, OD, Estes, can pick up that freight.......at LOWER RATES.......

Don't think the customers are so stupid as to not take advantage of any situation.

Non-Unions want to scab out that freight.....at LOWER RATES? They will do it at the expense of their employees. They can fluctuate their Labor costs to reflect cut-rate freight......

Not very smart, if they want to hire/keep their non-Union employees..........

In the movie, Casino, there is an old Mormon guy, who walks into the money counting room, fills a briefcase with skimmed money, and then leaves to deliver the money to the mob bosses. Everybody sees him but nobody sees him. That's kinda my story except I ain't Mormon. Every morning, I'm on the dock turning in paperwork. I say good morning and while walking to the dock office, I pay attention to how the dock operates. How the guys move the freight and what kind of freight it is. Next, I'm in the general office getting my morning paperwork ready, to return to my barn. I say good morning and watch the office guys running one of the biggest terminals in the company get ready for another day. What can I say, I'm curious and friendly.

I'm not suggesting, in any way, shape, or form, that other LTL's run this way, but I can say, from personal observation, that mine does. What I see, on a day in and day out basis, is a organized, efficient, no fuss, no muss, process of stripping, moving and reloading freight. Everything is on pallets, shrink wrapped or banded, and handled with respect. No horseplay with the forklifts or stopping and talking about whatever just head in the game and working the freight. The general office guys are the same way. I've seen them debating the best delivery options and how they keep all that stuff, in their head, is beyond me. My brains would have painted the walls whatever color brains are.

With respect to your contract negotiation I appreciate and sympathize with the situation that you find yourself in. You've given concessions and you want them back. You're not sure if the current union negotiators are working for you or just kicking the can down the road, while trying to convince you guys that they got you a sweet deal. Customers are on edge and there are other LTL's circling trying to pick off freight. But, don't think that all non union LTL's have to "cut rate" or "scab out freight" at the expense of how much they pay their drivers or that freight will come back after the contract is settled. Saia ain't that animal and they prove it every July, with a pay raise.

Good luck and I hope that you get everything that you are looking for.
 
In the movie, Casino, there is an old Mormon guy, who walks into the money counting room, fills a briefcase with skimmed money, and then leaves to deliver the money to the mob bosses. Everybody sees him but nobody sees him. That's kinda my story except I ain't Mormon. Every morning, I'm on the dock turning in paperwork. I say good morning and while walking to the dock office, I pay attention to how the dock operates. How the guys move the freight and what kind of freight it is. Next, I'm in the general office getting my morning paperwork ready, to return to my barn. I say good morning and watch the office guys running one of the biggest terminals in the company get ready for another day. What can I say, I'm curious and friendly.

I'm not suggesting, in any way, shape, or form, that other LTL's run this way, but I can say, from personal observation, that mine does. What I see, on a day in and day out basis, is a organized, efficient, no fuss, no muss, process of stripping, moving and reloading freight. Everything is on pallets, shrink wrapped or banded, and handled with respect. No horseplay with the forklifts or stopping and talking about whatever just head in the game and working the freight. The general office guys are the same way. I've seen them debating the best delivery options and how they keep all that stuff, in their head, is beyond me. My brains would have painted the walls whatever color brains are.

With respect to your contract negotiation I appreciate and sympathize with the situation that you find yourself in. You've given concessions and you want them back. You're not sure if the current union negotiators are working for you or just kicking the can down the road, while trying to convince you guys that they got you a sweet deal. Customers are on edge and there are other LTL's circling trying to pick off freight. But, don't think that all non union LTL's have to "cut rate" or "scab out freight" at the expense of how much they pay their drivers or that freight will come back after the contract is settled. Saia ain't that animal and they prove it every July, with a pay raise.

Good luck and I hope that you get everything that you are looking for.
good post...a lot of truth...I like the quote.."everybody sees him but nobody sees him...Good points
 
In the movie, Casino, there is an old Mormon guy, who walks into the money counting room, fills a briefcase with skimmed money, and then leaves to deliver the money to the mob bosses. Everybody sees him but nobody sees him. That's kinda my story except I ain't Mormon. Every morning, I'm on the dock turning in paperwork. I say good morning and while walking to the dock office, I pay attention to how the dock operates. How the guys move the freight and what kind of freight it is. Next, I'm in the general office getting my morning paperwork ready, to return to my barn. I say good morning and watch the office guys running one of the biggest terminals in the company get ready for another day. What can I say, I'm curious and friendly.

I'm not suggesting, in any way, shape, or form, that other LTL's run this way, but I can say, from personal observation, that mine does. What I see, on a day in and day out basis, is a organized, efficient, no fuss, no muss, process of stripping, moving and reloading freight. Everything is on pallets, shrink wrapped or banded, and handled with respect. No horseplay with the forklifts or stopping and talking about whatever just head in the game and working the freight. The general office guys are the same way. I've seen them debating the best delivery options and how they keep all that stuff, in their head, is beyond me. My brains would have painted the walls whatever color brains are.

With respect to your contract negotiation I appreciate and sympathize with the situation that you find yourself in. You've given concessions and you want them back. You're not sure if the current union negotiators are working for you or just kicking the can down the road, while trying to convince you guys that they got you a sweet deal. Customers are on edge and there are other LTL's circling trying to pick off freight. But, don't think that all non union LTL's have to "cut rate" or "scab out freight" at the expense of how much they pay their drivers or that freight will come back after the contract is settled. Saia ain't that animal and they prove it every July, with a pay raise.

Good luck and I hope that you get everything that you are looking for.
Interesting that you would choose that scene in that particular movie. The only ‘flaw’ there is that us ABF employees actually DO SEE and HAVE SEEN the ‘skim operation’ that the company has perpetuated over the last five years. The 7% ‘skim’ off of our wages, the week of vacation they ‘skimmed’ from everybody. And then the company went on a massive spending spree, after ****** us...new headquarters, acquisition of Panther and others, etc.

As Robert DeNiro’s narrative in that movie states: “The bosses had enough of Nicky...”. Well, we’ve had enough of ABF Freight’s lies, threats and deceitfullness.
 
In the movie, Casino, there is an old Mormon guy, who walks into the money counting room, fills a briefcase with skimmed money, and then leaves to deliver the money to the mob bosses. Everybody sees him but nobody sees him. That's kinda my story except I ain't Mormon. Every morning, I'm on the dock turning in paperwork. I say good morning and while walking to the dock office, I pay attention to how the dock operates. How the guys move the freight and what kind of freight it is. Next, I'm in the general office getting my morning paperwork ready, to return to my barn. I say good morning and watch the office guys running one of the biggest terminals in the company get ready for another day. What can I say, I'm curious and friendly.

I'm not suggesting, in any way, shape, or form, that other LTL's run this way, but I can say, from personal observation, that mine does. What I see, on a day in and day out basis, is a organized, efficient, no fuss, no muss, process of stripping, moving and reloading freight. Everything is on pallets, shrink wrapped or banded, and handled with respect. No horseplay with the forklifts or stopping and talking about whatever just head in the game and working the freight. The general office guys are the same way. I've seen them debating the best delivery options and how they keep all that stuff, in their head, is beyond me. My brains would have painted the walls whatever color brains are.

With respect to your contract negotiation I appreciate and sympathize with the situation that you find yourself in. You've given concessions and you want them back. You're not sure if the current union negotiators are working for you or just kicking the can down the road, while trying to convince you guys that they got you a sweet deal. Customers are on edge and there are other LTL's circling trying to pick off freight. But, don't think that all non union LTL's have to "cut rate" or "scab out freight" at the expense of how much they pay their drivers or that freight will come back after the contract is settled. Saia ain't that animal and they prove it every July, with a pay raise.

Good luck and I hope that you get everything that you are looking for.
We're probably not going to get everything back, but wages have already returned at least to 2013 levels and it's already out the vacation is coming back. The lost time off is difficult, but you don't lose money there, you just have to work for it, but paid time off is a very good benefit I do agree. I told the company so in their pre-contract negotiations survey as well as the union survey. What so many of our union members don't want to admit is ABF/ArcBest's intentions to diversify were no secret in the last negotiations, and the Union had to negotiate a contract that had the members subsidize their "own" defunct pensions. Of course they had to do it in such a way that it appears ABF/ArcBest stole from us. (Not all pension funds are going broke, but Central States is one that's in peril, and unfortunately, the one I'm in.) In this contract what comes back will be traded for pension contribution adjustments, and it's not going to be easy to negotiate. Our Union finds itself having to actually negotiate with companies. A strike destroys both the Union and the Company, so they make a pact and keep voting on it until the members realize it's settled. Unfortunately, when these contracts get extended you do lose some customers and they usually get some fixed rates from other carriers, so when it's settled it takes maybe a year to see some come back.
 
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We're probably not going to get everything back, but wages have already returned at least to 2013 levels and it's already out the vacation is coming back. The lost time off is difficult, but you don't lose money there, you just have to work for it, but paid time off is a very good benefit I do agree. I told the company so in their pre-contract negotiations survey as well as the union survey. What so many of our union members don't want to admit is ABF/ArcBest's intentions to diversify were no secret in the last negotiations, and the Union had to negotiate a contract that had the members subsidize their "own" defunct pensions. Of course they had to do it in such a way that it appears ABF/ArcBest stole from us. (Not all pension funds are going broke, but Central States is one that's in peril, and unfortunately, the one I'm in.) In this contract what comes back will be traded for pension contribution adjustments, and it's not going to be easy to negotiate. Our Union finds itself having to actually negotiate with companies. A strike destroys both the Union and the Company, so they make a pact and keep voting on it until the members realize it's settled. Unfortunately, when these contracts get extended you do lose some customers and they usually get some fixed rates from other carriers, so when it's settled it takes maybe a year to see some come back.
Everybody hears you, but no one is listening..
 
Interesting point, customers have no patience when it comes to this stuff. No shipping manager wants to be fired because the carrier they chose is not servicing them due to a strike. That is career *******.

Just a hint of a strike would cause a stampede of customers away. No one can risk that even in this environment. They have a competitor with the lowest wages in the business, filthy leased facilities, unsafe rolling garbage for equipment and sales folks who boast they have the lowest operating costs in the industry. Easy picking for a desperate competitor....

I think it was Red Star or some one else who went on some type of a strike and in 1 day they were shut down. Brilliant...

It does not take long for the stampede of customers to cut off a carrier and put them out of business.....
"filthy leased facilities" ? Even good ole Aye Bee Ffuh isn't immune from that one!
 
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