ABF | Dispatch methods

canaryinthemine

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Any other terminal out there dispatch by straight seniority instead of bids?

Since I'm in a small 10 man barn, we've always bid our work by start times, all work available posted the night before,....for at least the last 25 years that I know of....Works for us, anyway.

Recently, the question came up about bid runs and areas. I was told by our Labor man a while ago, that "many terminals " dispatch like us.......he gave no examples.

Just curious,...... anyone else dispatch by straight seniority, all work available, with no set bid runs? I would imagine this would apply to the smaller terminals only.
 
If I remember right, any barn that is ten men or less are treated like everyone is unassigned. At our old barn we only had 7 men and that is what we did. They posted start times the day before and you signed what time by seniority. Any barns larger than that had to post bids. Don't quote me on the number of men in the barn but that is the number I think it is.
 
Very Small barn...seniority posted by start times....runs are not bid and are assigned by dispatch...
We got 4 full time guys at our place and 2 start times. Two on one start time and one on another. Seniority picks there. Guessing it's just how your barn did it from the beginning is the rule. Past practices.
 
I know of a 2 man road board, 1 turn bid, 1 open turn bid. I know the company would love to do away with Bids, have windows for drivers, many different scenerios.. wheel boards, they would love to gaggle us all into being available whenever and for whatever.. I personally have never heard of signing up for work times the day before. funny how every area does it different.
 
In the Carolina supplement there is very specific language concerning the percentage of drivers who can be "unasigned". Meaning no specific bid start time. Bids have to be posted at least twice a year with a maximum of 15% (I think) being unassigned. The crap of never knowing your start time until the day before (unless you are the top dog) would be a deal breaker for me. Great for senior drivers, lousy for the bottom guys.
 
Those of us in Central PA have more than 15% with no start time and lots of times we know the day before but there are times when we know when the phone rings.
 
Thank you Gents. Appreciate all your replies. We have a situation where the 6th, 7th, and 8th men would have to make a devil's choice. Either give up their guarantee and seniority to a junior man,......or work a night shift on a guarantee, and watch a junior man potentially work daylight 5 days. I know the junior men think they are being taken "advantage" of,........but I don't think a senior man should have to ether give up prime work time, or guarantee.


Besides, we have about 4 guys who will retire within a year or so,...including me. This means that those junior guys will now be in those 6th, 7th and 8th spots,.......I wonder how feelings will change at that time........

Was told by a junior man,.....who came from YRC,.......that we "HAVE" to have bids......even though I told him we've been doing it this way for,.....as I said,.....25 years.....that I know of.

Told him that I spent 5 years on the night time dock when I first started,....(we all did..)....and,....I was told the usual "That was then, this is now. That was you, this is me."......

Just wanted to be able to tell him that ABF has terminals that dispatch similar to us with some veracity.
 
Was told by a junior man,.....who came from YRC,.......that we "HAVE" to have bids......even though I told him we've been doing it this way for,.....as I said,.....25 years.....that I know of.
OK, so, is the issue the number of men on call, or the company sending the guys anywhere they want, or both? Both of those can/should be addressed in the supplement and the absence of specific language leaves it the company's option.
 
OK, so, is the issue the number of men on call, or the company sending the guys anywhere they want, or both? Both of those can/should be addressed in the supplement and the absence of specific language leaves it the company's option.


Bids would be based on the guarantee, which, in a 10 man terminal means that 8 guys are on the guarantee. However, there is night time dock work which starts at 10:00 P.M.. Currently we use Art. 53 language for bidding: " All work posted the night before, and all available work assigned a start time."

95% of the time you do the same thing at roughly the same time. If the dock work gets down to you on Friday night (Sunday start),.........then by default you pretty much have it for the week,.........Unless a senior man misses more than a day or so. Then he has a choice to bump onto the night time dock. Usually no one exercises that choice. It actually hasn't happened in more than a year.

But,.....we have two bottom men who detest night time dock work.........In fact,....one was "told" by a former TM when he got hired,....he would be daylight driving all the time......Funny,......I'm the steward, and I wasn't in on that meeting..........

The thinking is,.....that if they force bids,.....a senior man would have to weigh passing his guarantee and seniority to a junior man to avoid being forced ,....for 6 months,....on night time dock.....The junior man either gets 6 months of guaranteed work,.....even through slow winter,.......or he goes on call ,....and probably works all daylight 4 - 5 days a week. This disregards the companies' ability to cancel bids at any time,...and other issues.

Also,....we have the 9 hour language that we'll have to contend with. At least 4 bids would be subject to that,.......which would mean that 4 senior guys take a (further) pay cut.....3 - 8 hour bids, 4 - 9 hour bids, and one 4 day, 10 hour bid,......and two on call.........

All I see is jealousy, hate and divisiveness if we do that.
 
This is how our supplement states it. Southern region area
Section 4.
At any terminal where ten (10) or less active employees are
employed, starting times shall not be subject to bid; however, the
days of work shall be subject to bid, and shall consist of five (5)
consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10) hour days, which
can be split as long as the employee has two (2) consecutive days
off.
All employees at such terminal shall be paid the rate of pay provided
in this Agreement.
Bids for eight (8) hour days and/or ten (10) hour days will be bid weekly.
Reporting times shall be chosen in order of seniority. The employees
shall be notified at the end of the day’s work the starting time available
for the next day. Employees may by seniority choose from all
available starting times regardless of whether they are bid on an eight
(8) hour day or a ten (10) hour day, unless otherwise agreed to.
At any terminal where more than ten (10) active employees but less
than sixteen (16) active employees are employed, nine (9) starting
times shall be subject to bid; however, the days of work shall consist
of five (5) consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10)
hour days, which can be split as long as the employee has two (2)
consecutive days off.
The remainder of the positions shall be bid as unassigned consisting
of any five (5), eight (8) hour days worked in any work week. A
casual employee may be used without regard to regular employees
being on duty after the daily/weekly guarantee has been satisfied.
 
This is how our supplement states it. Southern region area
Section 4.
At any terminal where ten (10) or less active employees are
employed, starting times shall not be subject to bid; however, the
days of work shall be subject to bid, and shall consist of five (5)
consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10) hour days, which
can be split as long as the employee has two (2) consecutive days
off.
All employees at such terminal shall be paid the rate of pay provided
in this Agreement.
Bids for eight (8) hour days and/or ten (10) hour days will be bid weekly.
Reporting times shall be chosen in order of seniority. The employees
shall be notified at the end of the day’s work the starting time available
for the next day. Employees may by seniority choose from all
available starting times regardless of whether they are bid on an eight
(8) hour day or a ten (10) hour day, unless otherwise agreed to.
At any terminal where more than ten (10) active employees but less
than sixteen (16) active employees are employed, nine (9) starting
times shall be subject to bid; however, the days of work shall consist
of five (5) consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10)
hour days, which can be split as long as the employee has two (2)
consecutive days off.
The remainder of the positions shall be bid as unassigned consisting
of any five (5), eight (8) hour days worked in any work week. A
casual employee may be used without regard to regular employees
being on duty after the daily/weekly guarantee has been satisfied.
Never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad I'm in the Carolina supplement. At least as far as bidding is concerned. Don't you have suitcase seniority in the southern region too?
 
This is how our supplement states it. Southern region area
Section 4.
At any terminal where ten (10) or less active employees are
employed, starting times shall not be subject to bid; however, the
days of work shall be subject to bid, and shall consist of five (5)
consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10) hour days, which
can be split as long as the employee has two (2) consecutive days
off.
All employees at such terminal shall be paid the rate of pay provided
in this Agreement.
Bids for eight (8) hour days and/or ten (10) hour days will be bid weekly.
Reporting times shall be chosen in order of seniority. The employees
shall be notified at the end of the day’s work the starting time available
for the next day. Employees may by seniority choose from all
available starting times regardless of whether they are bid on an eight
(8) hour day or a ten (10) hour day, unless otherwise agreed to.
At any terminal where more than ten (10) active employees but less
than sixteen (16) active employees are employed, nine (9) starting
times shall be subject to bid; however, the days of work shall consist
of five (5) consecutive eight (8) hour days or four (4) ten (10)
hour days, which can be split as long as the employee has two (2)
consecutive days off.
The remainder of the positions shall be bid as unassigned consisting
of any five (5), eight (8) hour days worked in any work week. A
casual employee may be used without regard to regular employees
being on duty after the daily/weekly guarantee has been satisfied.
That sounds like a nightmare for all involved. I can't see why either side would want something like that in the contract.
 
Any other terminal out there dispatch by straight seniority instead of bids?

Since I'm in a small 10 man barn, we've always bid our work by start times, all work available posted the night before,....for at least the last 25 years that I know of....Works for us, anyway.

Recently, the question came up about bid runs and areas. I was told by our Labor man a while ago, that "many terminals " dispatch like us.......he gave no examples.

Just curious,...... anyone else dispatch by straight seniority, all work available, with no set bid runs? I would imagine this would apply to the smaller terminals only.
No. We get handed our manifest with a cheery "Here you go!" in the mornings. I'm smack dab in the middle of the board, but I'd still like to see it done by seniority.
 
In the Carolina supplement there is very specific language concerning the percentage of drivers who can be "unasigned". Meaning no specific bid start time. Bids have to be posted at least twice a year with a maximum of 15% (I think) being unassigned. The crap of never knowing your start time until the day before (unless you are the top dog) would be a deal breaker for me. Great for senior drivers, lousy for the bottom guys.
It's 80% at our barn...one unassigned. Bids posted once per year...usually in January. I'd like to see bids twice per year.
 
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