FedEx Freight | will watkins employees have to be recertified?

local61man

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if you are already a watkins employee that works dock and city, will he have to be recertified if this fedex thing happens..?
 
local61man said:
background check,mvr,i guess what i meant was requalified as to drive.

You can count on a background check. Very exstensive. Fedex ran them on AF drivers when we were bought. I posted this somewhere else today.:smilie_132:
 
No one has talked about insurance with Fedex, do you have any? Just curious!!!

If so who is it with? And when does it start?
 
Usually as long as you are completly honest and forth coming about your criminal and driving record they will probably keep you. Assuming there isn't anything terrible on your record. I know they will not give someone with a dui a second look.
As for the insurance. Fedex is a self insured company. It kicks in after 30 days if I remember right. If I'm wrong I'm sure someone will correct me. I think the insurance is pretty good. I pay $48 a week for family coverage. That is for the best in all categories. $450 yearly deductable and $20 copay when we go to the doctor
 
Look, I wouldn't freak out too much. Maybe some other fellas can help me out on this one, but I don't remember a single person being shown the door for past indiscretions when FedEx bought us. Also, I wouldn't worry about insurance and the like. If memory serves, the whole thing from payroll to insurance was seamless. You'll probably keep what you've got until the open enrollment at the end of the year. Same goes for your 401k. It took them about 3 years to move ours to Vanguard, a real swell move by the way. Bennies and wages are still not the same east / west, but they're slowly but surely rolling them together to achieve parity.

Probably the first thing you'll get is new uniforms.
If FedEx did buy you guys, congratulations! This is a top notch outfit to work for and the name carries a certain amount of respectibility in social groups. "Hey, I work for Watkins Trucking, how 'bout you?"
"I work for FedEx."

Which side of that conversation would you like to be on?

Again, congratulations and welcome aboard the Good Ship FedEx!!

Lou
 
nobody said:
Look, I wouldn't freak out too much. Maybe some other fellas can help me out on this one, but I don't remember a single person being shown the door for past indiscretions when FedEx bought us. Also, I wouldn't worry about insurance and the like. If memory serves, the whole thing from payroll to insurance was seamless. You'll probably keep what you've got until the open enrollment at the end of the year. Same goes for your 401k. It took them about 3 years to move ours to Vanguard, a real swell move by the way. Bennies and wages are still not the same east / west, but they're slowly but surely rolling them together to achieve parity.

Probably the first thing you'll get is new uniforms.
If FedEx did buy you guys, congratulations! This is a top notch outfit to work for and the name carries a certain amount of respectibility in social groups. "Hey, I work for Watkins Trucking, how 'bout you?"
"I work for FedEx."

Which side of that conversation would you like to be on?

Again, congratulations and welcome aboard the Good Ship FedEx!!

Lou
Not to be negative but to answer your question I like being on the Watkins side of the conversation just fine. I know many of your drivers in the west very well and am aware of all your bennies from ins to vacation time to acess to upper management including the b-day cards and we have all those things as well at Watkins , some of them being better like 3 weeks vaction after 5 yrs instead of 8, or from paid ins in full up to $55 a month for med. dental and vision, mileage is 3 cents lower but drop n hooks are higher as well as full scale pay after 12 hours instead of half pay, our 401 match is the same as yours. I say all this to inform those that don't no Watkins is a very well run, profitable company that treats it people very well and that while this rumored buy out will be great for Fed-ex when it comes to drivers at Watkins if the 2 companies are mereged together and Watkin drives are put at the bottom of the bid board then we stand to lose a lot in this deal.Personally i would go from a 2800 mile a week meet and turn , home every night and off weekends to the extra board doing lay down runs ect ect been there done that so I'm not to excited about the whole ideal. Before you say so i know we have no control and we will just have to wait and see ect. This is just 1 Watkins drivers point of view, I hope i haven't offended anyone i just wanted to offer the other side. Thanks
 
ls57racer you are correct about which end of the conversation to be on. Alot of drivers just don't realize what a great company Watkins is and the benefits we have. Our insurace is cheaper and vacation time is better and p&d drivers make more per hr than Fedex drivers. Thats not to say that Fedex is not a good company its that most of us are really happy with Watkins and the Watkins family. But, change will happen and hopefully all will work out and we can all just make Fedex better and more profitable. Good Luck to All!
 
I say, if it happens, Fedex will take care in helping you guys out....it will only get better, as it did with the AF buyout, I love my company and my job....I would think that the seniority and bids would stay the same, after all, its basically a rebranding, bringing you on board with the Big Purple, I doubt Fedex drivers would be able to nose in on you guys runs, etc..... but I dont know, I just know what happened at AF, it was gravy....I say welcome aboard Watkins.....and thanks for doing a great job.
 
ls57racer said:
Not to be negative but to answer your question I like being on the Watkins side of the conversation just fine. I know many of your drivers in the west very well and am aware of all your bennies from ins to vacation time to acess to upper management including the b-day cards and we have all those things as well at Watkins , some of them being better like 3 weeks vaction after 5 yrs instead of 8, or from paid ins in full up to $55 a month for med. dental and vision, mileage is 3 cents lower but drop n hooks are higher as well as full scale pay after 12 hours instead of half pay, our 401 match is the same as yours. I say all this to inform those that don't no Watkins is a very well run, profitable company that treats it people very well and that while this rumored buy out will be great for Fed-ex when it comes to drivers at Watkins if the 2 companies are mereged together and Watkin drives are put at the bottom of the bid board then we stand to lose a lot in this deal.Personally i would go from a 2800 mile a week meet and turn , home every night and off weekends to the extra board doing lay down runs ect ect been there done that so I'm not to excited about the whole ideal. Before you say so i know we have no control and we will just have to wait and see ect. This is just 1 Watkins drivers point of view, I hope i haven't offended anyone i just wanted to offer the other side. Thanks

What does that mean full pay after 12 hours instead of half pay??
 
PINBALL said:
What does that mean full pay after 12 hours instead of half pay??
When you are on a lay down bid you have a set cut time( time to depart) usually about 12 hrs after you arrived, if you are not dispatched by that time you go on the clock at your full hourly rate not at 1/2 rate like FDX (in the west anyway) does. This keeps the dock and dispatcher responsible to keep you on schedule or pay for it.:chairshot:
 
1/2 pay

oh, i gotcha... i may be wrong but i don't think we have many left laying down in hotels.... mayby like .001 percent of our drivers lay down...
 
Watkins Motor Lines Company Linehaul Team Driver

Can anyone tell me what it is like to be a Watkins Motor Lines Company Linehaul Team Driver? How is the pay and how many miles on average would I get if hired. I am trying to get hired in Atlanta.
 
PINBALL said:
oh, i gotcha... i may be wrong but i don't think we have many left laying down in hotels.... mayby like .001 percent of our drivers lay down...
80% of FXF in boise are lay down bids which is about 35 to 38 bids that do lay down.:rolleyes:
 
i know i've ran as far west as el paso and cowtown,and that was a single o/o.but as a general rule they (watkins) would not run a single company truck that far out.
 
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