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FedEx Freight | Teamsters Roll Call...Who's getting the ball rolling?

I haven't posted on here for a while but... SwampRatt... you make an interesting point. They are hiring like crazy and can't seem to find enough new drivers to fill the seats of the trucks they put out of service to pull the trailers we don't have. Whatever percentage of drivers would need to sign a union card will be diluted by all of the new drivers who feel just lucky to have a job. Talk to the guys at the lower end carriers and they all have a similar mindset. Lucky to have a paycheck etc. They don't understand that, at FedEx Freight, they will get fired as quickly as a 20 year driver who never reported any of their accidents, er, I mean was accident free. 20 points in 5 years is quite easily attainable. During our safety meeting I noted how many drivers had zero points. I'm no snitch but since we're all friends here and I know I can trust you: some of the drivers who were purportedly accident free might not be. Maybe that's why they're on a hiring binge.

Personally, I am ambivalent about the union. I've only seen what happened to Alvan and I note what's going on with YRC. On the other side of things are Old Dominion and Central Transport. So FedEx drivers see these things and we know we could have it much worse. I don't see how I could realistically convince someone to be part of a union nor, for that matter, how I could be convinced that it might benefit me in the long run. However they screwed things up at YRC should give everyone pause. All I see there are graybeards whose pension plans were stolen and whose wages they were forced to give back. Basically, I'm saying that there is a lack of information about how organizing could help the driver and also how organizing might hurt the driver's ability to care for his family.

We'll give you more money. We'll lower your costs. We'll guarantee you $X when you get X old. OK. It all sounds like something out of the "progressive" playbook. I was promised free health care for life after my time in the service. Frankly, my multiple experiences at the VA (which is full of unionized workers) were so bad that I choose to use my own money to see a non-union doctor to get the treatment that I need. Does it cost me more? Yes. Is my quality of life better? Absolutely. If being part of a union means that I get all of these free things in return for a lower quality of life, crappier equipment, and even worse bureaucratic mismanagement, I will do as always. I will support the unions with all of my heart. I appreciate the unions and everything that they do and have done for the driving profession. I just don't have enough information to do an effective cost-benefit analysis. If I were to offer one bit of advice, it would be as follows: If they don't want us to be union, they should weed out the overbearing and egotistical managers before promoting them into positions where they cause insurrection throughout their respective terminals.
 
renegade169 said:
I hear bits and pieces of all different kinds of stories coming from drivers of different domiciles telling me that meetings are being held, cards are being signed, and change is slowly coming. I've been in touch with our local organizer who is telling me that the national heads are telling him 'hands-off fed ex until further notice'. Different sites have little bits of info here and there but there is nothing with a complete list of facts and/or news out there. What's the word in your neck of the woods? The local UPS guys I talk to are telling me that this particular guy is worthless and WILL be voted out. Another organizer from a neighboring district has told me that there are groups from many major terminals holding educational meetings about getting the ball rolling and had a small number of drivers to sign cards just to be protected. I am ready and from the general consensus of my fellow workers, NHS is ready too.

What's the deal? Feel free to PM me if you'd rather not post publicly. I'd like to edit this post as information comes in so no one else has to go through this sifting through a dozens different sites and a hundred different posts like I've done and there is a good summary of the replies at the top of this post.

p.s. Let's not turn this into a pissing match about unions. Just trying to get the facts straight and put it out there for other curious folks.
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I believe we need to see exactly who was the last company to be organized by the teamsters union.....

been decades other than Overnite which was a gift to escape the Central States pension.

The reality is there is nothing the union can offer except lower wages, less job security and unsafe rolling garbage...
 
Screw having the teamsters involved. I have no interst in that. The driver safety points only go back three years now...not five. In my opinion that is quite acceptable.
 
steelhauler34 said:
Screw having the teamsters involved. I have no interst in that. The driver safety points only go back three years now...not five. In my opinion that is quite acceptable.
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wow...that's all I have to say. that is the epitome of modern day steering wheel holders.

I suppose the b/s raises that don't even keep up with the rate of inflation is acceptable, healthcare coverage with premiums that went through the roof this year is acceptable, not being on the red shirt buddy list and being treated like an a-hole is acceptable, being an at-will employee and having no job security is acceptable. I need to move to wherever you live, where I can feel it's acceptable to not have a leg to stand on. That must be a really nice place.
 
steelhauler34 said:
Screw having the teamsters involved. I have no interst in that. The driver safety points only go back three years now...not five. In my opinion that is qui

Just remember if it were not for the unions your pay rate would be at least 35% less then it is today, and while on the point of pay rates, did you get your pay raise this year?
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Easy_Does_It said:
steelhauler34 said:
Screw having the teamsters involved. I have no interst in that. The driver safety points only go back three years now...not five. In my opinion that is qui

Just remember if it were not for the unions your pay rate would be at least 35% less then it is today, and while on the point of pay rates, did you get your pay raise this year?
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Well I thank them a million for that....it doesn't mean I need them in my work place.
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renegade169 said:
wow...that's all I have to say. that is the epitome of modern day steering wheel holders.

I suppose the b/s raises that don't even keep up with the rate of inflation is acceptable, healthcare coverage with premiums that went through the roof this year is acceptable, not being on the red shirt buddy list and being treated like an a-hole is acceptable, being an at-will employee and having no job security is acceptable. I need to move to wherever you live, where I can feel it's acceptable to not have a leg to stand on. That must be a really nice place.
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Yeah this is such a ****ty place to work. You need to go back (I don't know maybe you never were there) and see what 90% of the rest of the trucking industry is like. A union is not necessary here. Most of your complaints won't change but the union will sure take your money. If it is so ****ty here I am sure one of the unionized carriers is hiring.
 
I am going to leave it at this... at my last job which was nonunion, I got paid an average wage and it was all straight time, no OT. Average work week was 65 hours. There was only medical coverage, no dental or eye care and the medical was OK at best. Tractors were ratty, half of which could not pass a DOT inspection if needed. I dealt with a jerk off for an operations supervisor, crap freight and garbage equipment to handle said crap freight. Was it a job? Yes. Did it suck? Yes. Was I happy to have the job? At first yes, but the feeling of being happy to have a job wore thinly very quickly. There are plenty of people happy to have a job but it does not mean they are actually happy with their job. If fedex is as bad as everyone in this thread has stated, then those happy to have a job people won't be happy for very long. I wasn't happy so I did something about it. I got a job at a union LTL carrier where everything is better. More money per hour, OT after 8, free health and welfare benefits which means $0 out of my check each week. Top tier benefits at that. Trucks are better, not the best, but better. Freight is better and the office management treats us fine. No bull****... I am happy again and hope this is the last job I ever have to look for again. Things are not the best with the union but I suspect they will get better as time goes on. If you fedex guys work the contract right and take care of the important issues right up front, it will get better for you. If you absolutely feel you don't need a union then don't sign the card. I suspect that most of the fedex drivers have had enough BS and want change. We are all human at the end of the day. One person can only take so much before they have had enough but that shouldn't have to mean throwing in the towel and tossing a career because management refuses to listen and change. You guys do what you want but at the end of the day, nothing will get done to resolve the issues if you guys don't take a stand. You will go to work miserable and come home miserable. What kind of life is that to live? I know I wouldn't want to work or feel like that. Driving a truck and running off deliveries and pick ups is hard enough. Don't need the added stress of **** poor management making your day that much harder. Educate yourselves and make an informed decision. Ask a union driver at one of your stops what it is really like.
 
No disrespect meant just the way I feel. I dealt with UAW shops a lot when I was pulling a flat bed. To me it just created a very poor work environment if which I want no part. I happen to think we have it ok here. There is a ton of large corporate politics here but the union brings its own set too. Just my opinion and along for the ride either way.
 
We have a lot of problems at FXF. But I just don't see the union making it any better. Just go to the YRC Forum and read all the crap on there.
 
Everyone wants to throw YRC out there when the "U" word is brought up. Who put them in the position they are in? Yellow or the IBT?

My long time neighbor has been a Roadway/YRC driver for 28 years, I've been hearing about their situation and reading his memo's for a very long time. I'm not drinking the purple kool-aid anymore. YRC blatantly leaves out Roadway when it talks of it's 'heritage', just in the same manner FXF does with Watkins. They'd like to forget about that family run company. We've been standing by since the Watkins acquisition, then the freight merger. It's just one new policy after another trying to weed out senior drivers. FXF wants to fill those seats with guys that were plucked off the dock and taught what FXF wants them to know. If you know how to drive a manual, understand bridge/weight laws, and know HazMat regs inside and out...my friend, you know too much. Anyone with half a brain and minimal testicular fortitude is going to question or deny management requests to do things in an unsafe manner. Insubordination of a supervisor's request...although you're complying with policy and the law...isn't forgotten by the red shirts where I run out of.

Everyone in my barn is looking for job security. I've been here since 2003 and many others have much more time in. Why should all the worker bees throw away a career and a sense of normalcy because some salary punk, who makes less than we do a year, needs to feel better about himself and claw his way to the top...taking out anyone in his way.

I don't know. Maybe some of you work at a much better run facility but most everyone I've spoken to at the Dual/Rail Hubs has had enough of being pushed into the corner.
 
yrc-atm said:
Dont negotiate a yrc contract. Negotiate a fedex contract.

Sent from my SCH-R530U using Forum Runner
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Bingo!! Negotiate a FedEx contract. UPS freight negotiated a UPS freight contract. Ask a teamster business agent about it and see for yourself.
 
Yall keep saying "dont negotiate a XX contract, negotiate a Fedex one"

Ok, who?
Me personally?
No, a collective of all drivers (many of which are idiots, and can not even balance their checkbook)
Is that who will devise our contract? With a rep at the helm? If so, PASS.

At least half of our driver pool is dying of old age, and the new hires have zero work ethic.
Yeah, I can imagine the contract they would be willing to settle for after the scare and doom crew have filled their ears.

Do some of you believe that we just sit down, say "Ok, free healthcare, $2hr raise, bi-yearly,. 85c per mile, ect, ect" and its just handed over?

You think a union barn wont have strict safety regs?
This is the world we live in. Liabilities are expensive, as well are lawsuits.

Please, come visit me. I have some super real estate deals to offer you all!

I am sorry, I do not have an answer, but a union is not going to make everyday at FX like Christmas


Lastly, look at the union forums. Even the mighty UPS. EVERYTHING is union talk. You know why? Because that is what is on their mind, thats what consumes their thoughts. You say job security?
Do their post give the impression that their minds are settled?
Hardly. .
 
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No F-bdy Bs said:
Yall keep saying "dont negotiate a XX contract, negotiate a Fedex one"

Ok, who?
Me personally?
No, a collective of all drivers (many of which are idiots, and can not even balance their checkbook)
Is that who will devise our contract? If so, PASS.

At least half of our driver pool is dying of old age, and the new hires have zero work ethic.
Yeah, I can imagine the contract they would be willing to settle for after the scare and doom crew have filled their ears.

Do some of you believe that we just sit down, say "Ok, free healthcare, $2hr raise, bi-yearly,. 85c per mile, ect, ect" and its just handed over?

Please, come visit me. I have some super real estate deals to offer you all!
Click to expand...

Look up the word negotiate in the dictionary.

Sent from my SCH-R530U using Forum Runner
 
No F-bdy Bs said:
Yall keep saying "dont negotiate a XX contract, negotiate a Fedex one"

Ok, who?
Me personally?
No, a collective of all drivers (many of which are idiots, and can not even balance their checkbook)
Is that who will devise our contract? If so, PASS.

At least half of our driver pool is dying of old age, and the new hires have zero work ethic.
Yeah, I can imagine the contract they would be willing to settle for after the scare and doom crew have filled their ears.

Do some of you believe that we just sit down, say "Ok, free healthcare, $2hr raise, bi-yearly,. 85c per mile, ect, ect" and its just handed over?

You think a union barn wont have strict safety regs?
This is the world we live in. Liabilities are expensive, as well are lawsuits.

Please, come visit me. I have some super real estate deals to offer you all!

I am sorry, I do not have an answer, but a union is not going to make everyday at FX like Christmas.
Click to expand...

This thread is a step in the right direction. Imo.
 
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