Companies are there to make money. I am there to make money. As I said before, I do not need an individual to fight my battles, I fight for myself. We have a difference of opinion because we come from different backgrounds. I trust the system I am under and you trust yours. What I see is yours has broken down and you are the one that suffers. The only group getting rich are the union executives on your back. I may be wrong but you as an individual has financed the executive coffers and now they want to walk away. I don’t like it any more than any employees that are suffering. I do not want see anyone out of employment but to let the company/union take away from my future is something I would not stand and let happen. I not negative union but I only been in the real working world a short time. Seems not be where I want to be right now. Little background, 20+ years military and this is my second career. My wife told me I didn’t have go to work but had to get out of her house. Lol. I researched many jobs and was offered much more lucrative ventures. Always knew this where I belonged, LTL. Didn’t matter where went to work was going be best of the best. Cannot be any less.
ABF | How Do Teamsters Matter Anymore.
- Thread starter Frankie2010
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Companies are there to make money. I am there to make money. As I said before, I do not need an individual to fight my battles, I fight for myself. We have a difference of opinion because we come from different backgrounds. I trust the system I am under and you trust yours. What I see is yours has broken down and you are the one that suffers. The only group getting rich are the union executives on your back. I may be wrong but you as an individual has financed the executive coffers and now they want to walk away. I don’t like it any more than any employees that are suffering. I do not want see anyone out of employment but to let the company/union take away from my future is something I would not stand and let happen. I not negative union but I only been in the real working world a short time. Seems not be where I want to be right now. Little background, 20+ years military and this is my second career. My wife told me I didn’t have go to work but had to get out of her house. Lol. I researched many jobs and was offered much more lucrative ventures. Always knew this where I belonged, LTL. Didn’t matter where went to work was going be best of the best. Cannot be any less.
Probably shouldn’t be having this discussion on ABF site because have many friends working for ABF. They doing descent, talk to us though we non union, flash lights for us come over, basically we all get along. I not afraid to say that YRC act like non union guys are like the plague. Nobody any better than anyone else.
canaryinthemine
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As a retiree,....all I can say is ...I left ABF in fairly good shape when I left almost three years ago. I certainly didn't think the "system" was broken......and as far as the Union officials,.....there are a few at the top that will probably be voted out this time,...but they stayed as long as they did,..because of member indifference.....That will change......
Pension is fine,....despite Treasury-ordered cuts,....Just have to plan for it,....and with S.S.,...I'm making just as much as when I was working........And my wife will, when I die,.....far,far off in the distant future.......
I know a little about military culture,.....veteran myself,....and a son in the Navy. I can tell you this........and it'll probably astound you,....but,....they tell you the Truth MORE in the Military,....than Employers do in Civilian life....
You're the Vested Interest in the Military,...In Civilian life,...Money is.....
Time will tell,......and I wish you the Best of Luck. Keep in mind why Unions were created.....I predict within a few years,....you'll see a few good examples of .......why Unions are neccessary. I know you don't believe it now,.....But I have a lot of Faith in Corporate Malfeasance,.....having seen many, many examples......
And I'm SURE,...no matter how good the Employer,.....they will Outrage you, sometime in the Future.....They all do....
I'm sure I won't be here to see it happen, but if the unions are gone, you'll see employers go back to their old ways of operating.
canaryinthemine
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And here in Pittsburgh........the heart of Labor history,....Battle of Homestead, and all that.....We know just exactly what that means....
We've had enough examples.......
We've had enough examples.......
If you are serious about answering the question of "how do the teamsters matter"? Go work at a non union LTL carrier. You may get the same mileage pay, but will work at least an hour and a half for free every night (chasing paperwork, making placards, hooking and unhooking, break down, and have a camera and microphones on you all night. You will be called in regularly and written up because another car cut you off, you went 3 miles over the speed limit, had your hand in a chip back, had a jerky stick in your mouth that looks "too much like a cigarette you need to sign this", and on and on and on. Then, after spending 20 minutes not getting paid listening to how a slim Jim is a cigarette (when you dont even smoke) the fat ass manager says, "your write up is in the other room printing, go get it and bring it back to me so we can sign it." Oh, so you claim you wouldn't put up with it? Your fired.
Dont forget places like Saia where a few months ago pay was frozen and employer 401k contributions were "suspended indefinitely". Meanwhile the company brags about record 1st quarter profits and so much freight linehaul dispatch said, "if we dont have enough weekend linehaul volunteers you will be "randomly force dispatched on Saturday and Sunday night"
If you are seriously questioning what good the teamsters are you are way to use to being on easy street. You have no idea how good you have it.
Keep in mind, this is one small inconvenience non union driver put up with. I dont have time to document them all
Exactly. You are right. We may work a little more but we are paid well. I do not think “The Company” is waiting to screw us over. We get a fair wage for what is a fair days work. I do not think one employee for Estes thinks we are being screwed over. I am very happy making $114,000, bring home, last year and did not struggle one bit to do it. 4.5 days working per week and I am happy.
My response was to the OP. I have not worked at Estes, but I know Saia is looking to screw its employees at every turn.
Regardless of the non union company, they give enough to keep unions out. All non union drivers with good jobs have those jobs because of the presence of Teamsters. I have never been a teamster, but benefit greatly from their presence.
How much of that $114,000 is spent towards healthcare & your 401k? And how many hours a week do you work to make that salary?
I only work 4.5 days per week, sometimes 5.5 days, I run extra board. Insurance is minimal, maybe $40 per week. I pay in 7% of my pay to 401k which is matched 100% by company. Also treated very well. I can post weekly payslip if willing do same.
Posted my yearly benefits on the xpo board along with another person from a different region, How long have you been driving?
Trucker 206
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Excellent perspective! That post should be copy & pasted to the XPO Union thread. You make factual points in the differences between union & non...that one about giving away about 90 minutes of uncompensated time per night should raise a few eyebrows. Not to mention the pay freeze you....‘received’. Literally unheard of in a union shop without LENGTHY negotiations and a signed-by-both-parties MOU.
I don’t live to work, I work to live. You say you work 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 days a week, are they 14 hour days? I work about 45 hours a week & that’s 5 to many....
canaryinthemine
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$114,000 a year is great.......as long as the company doesn’t abruptly change dispatch,......or operations,.....or lanes...
Will they consult with you before they do any of that?
Careful about bragging about pay.....
Companies monitor these boards.......That abrupt operations change might come about if they realize the pay in certain terminals is pretty high.....
Will they consult with you before they do any of that?
Careful about bragging about pay.....
Companies monitor these boards.......That abrupt operations change might come about if they realize the pay in certain terminals is pretty high.....
Trucker 206
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If you’re happy where you are and what you’re doing, then it’s win-win for you. This ‘argument’ is about (mostly) being duly compensated for the industry we’re in and the work rules, AND the grievance process. Non-union companies for DECADES have been able to give just enough to squash any union drive that may surface. As I recall, XPO employees were given a sizable per-hour raise a few years ago when it appeared that the organization effort was gaining steam, and some terminals were successful in organizing despite the raise. A few more are in the midst of voting. Let’s keep in mind that wages are only PART of the equation. There are benefits to be looked at, and the biggest (IMO) are the work rules and the grievance process. The nons have work rules...THEIR rules, which they can change with literally no notice to the people doing the actual work. One day you’re enjoying that 10-stop, bump-docking route you’ve had for 12 years, the next day you’re scrubbing garbage cans at a terminal somewhere near the Arctic Circle....”just because”. And, you have no recourse. And you can’t file a grievance because...DAMN!...there’s no grievance procedure outlined in a contract.
canaryinthemine
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There's also that.....archaic idea of Freedom of Speech,...after you punch the time clock. That illusion is tepidly maintained at non-Union companies,...
Until an employee says something controversial,.....controversial in the employer's eyes.
Or you do something on Public Property that your employer regards as...controversial,...based on a complaint by,...a Customer,...or other member of the Public...
Unions are the Third-Party Advocate, between the Employer, the Public,....and the Employee.
These two ideas aren't even considered by most Employees,........until it happens to them. "Fairness" goes out the window,...and the Employer becomes Judge, Jury, and Prosecutor,....with only the company's bottom line to be considered.
NOT the wreckage of the Employee's family and life created by a......"profit-driven" decision.
It's a....Hell of a Lesson to learn,.......Having gone through an NLRB case, based on discriminatory and illegal practices,..by a Union company,.......which put my family through Hell,.....I , at least had a chance in court, to make MY case.....( took 5 years,...we "won"..)(Can I have my 5 years back, please?)..
In this age of "Employment-At-Will",....you don't get a chance to get a....day in court. They'll fire you for,...ANY reason,...EXCEPT for the "controversial" one.
Parted your hair wrong today,....You're Fired,........(NOT because you mentioned Union organizing to your Boss. That Firing would be ...Illegal.)
None of this stuff is discussed in High School,.....So many employees are...blind-sided, when they find out what their "Rights" are, under Employment-At-Will.
And the Lesson Learned is: ..."Shut Up, Sit down,.....Don't say a word, Do Whatever they Tell You,....Moral or Not....Yessir, Mr. Boss Man,..whatever you say,....Your Morals and Ethics supersede mine,...in the Work Place..."
Home of the Free? Land of the Brave?......Not so fast,...You punched the time clock,....We Own You.....
Until an employee says something controversial,.....controversial in the employer's eyes.
Or you do something on Public Property that your employer regards as...controversial,...based on a complaint by,...a Customer,...or other member of the Public...
Unions are the Third-Party Advocate, between the Employer, the Public,....and the Employee.
These two ideas aren't even considered by most Employees,........until it happens to them. "Fairness" goes out the window,...and the Employer becomes Judge, Jury, and Prosecutor,....with only the company's bottom line to be considered.
NOT the wreckage of the Employee's family and life created by a......"profit-driven" decision.
It's a....Hell of a Lesson to learn,.......Having gone through an NLRB case, based on discriminatory and illegal practices,..by a Union company,.......which put my family through Hell,.....I , at least had a chance in court, to make MY case.....( took 5 years,...we "won"..)(Can I have my 5 years back, please?)..
In this age of "Employment-At-Will",....you don't get a chance to get a....day in court. They'll fire you for,...ANY reason,...EXCEPT for the "controversial" one.
Parted your hair wrong today,....You're Fired,........(NOT because you mentioned Union organizing to your Boss. That Firing would be ...Illegal.)
None of this stuff is discussed in High School,.....So many employees are...blind-sided, when they find out what their "Rights" are, under Employment-At-Will.
And the Lesson Learned is: ..."Shut Up, Sit down,.....Don't say a word, Do Whatever they Tell You,....Moral or Not....Yessir, Mr. Boss Man,..whatever you say,....Your Morals and Ethics supersede mine,...in the Work Place..."
Home of the Free? Land of the Brave?......Not so fast,...You punched the time clock,....We Own You.....
I can’t speak for every other company, but absolutely none of that is true for FedEx. Maybe the pay, I don’t know what ABF pays, but FX is at 69cpm in KC and around 72cpm in other parts of the country. But everything else is not even close to being true. Paid for all non-driving work, no driver cams, sensible safety rules for the forward cam (don’t go over 75mph and don’t follow closer than 2 seconds for 2 minutes straight), and no bs write-ups.
Some non-union carriers are less desirable than others, just like some union ones.