Something to consider? Would you recommend your kids to work here? Lots of people quitting or retiring, yes there are, but how many new people have you seen come in lately? The company and the union need more people, period, for workload reasons, pension reasons, and insurance reasons. But outside of the obvious they don’t know how to get them here.
Yellow | Pension really fixed, not so sure
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Chain Baster
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lol, well put.
Two things in life that are definite.
You can’t fix stupid, or debate if.
Steward of the Rock
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Razorblade,
You speak of all the evils (in your mind) of union representation, yet you claim you were a union member at Preston and Yellow for 30 years. You also claimed that you were a steward and a union organizer during this time. Who in their right mind would ever want you to represent them as a steward? And, who would ever want you to help them organize potential new union members? You yourself enjoyed the benefits of a Teamster negotiated Union contract as well as a Teamster Union pension. It makes me sick to my stomach that people like you were ever a part of anything to do with the Teamsters. You are a disgrace to the Teamster name in my opinion.
You speak of all the evils (in your mind) of union representation, yet you claim you were a union member at Preston and Yellow for 30 years. You also claimed that you were a steward and a union organizer during this time. Who in their right mind would ever want you to represent them as a steward? And, who would ever want you to help them organize potential new union members? You yourself enjoyed the benefits of a Teamster negotiated Union contract as well as a Teamster Union pension. It makes me sick to my stomach that people like you were ever a part of anything to do with the Teamsters. You are a disgrace to the Teamster name in my opinion.
Michigan Bill
Good luck!
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I agree with you! Im just sick of getting ripped off by the government! Some weeks im paying 12-1400 in taxes, there's no justification for that!
Razorblade
Omniscient
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I don't claim anything. I've posted my years at Preston were 1974-1999. Started in Dubois Pa then to West Middlesex and the last 2 years in Pittsburgh. All my officer time was with 261 in New Castle. Road steward in both Dubois and Pittsburgh and was both road and local steward in West Middlesex. 1999-2004 were my Yellow linehaul years in Cleveland/Richfield. Those years were only to get the last 5 for 30 and out. I actually worked very little with the dispatch system in place there at the time.
There is a huge difference between representing members of a prosperous, profitable company and one that is hanging on by it's fingers. YRC Teamsters have no bargaining power. They can demand nothing. Are you going on strike? First you have to get a strike vote and that won't happen. Yellow has no cash on hand or money in the bank. Disrupt cash flow for two weeks and YRC won't make payroll. YRC has no options because no other company is interested in buying a union carrier. The whole company and everyone involved, including the IBT, is just riding it out to the inevitable bankruptcy. The IBT has 1.3 million members. Only 24,000 work for YRC. The union has already written off it's YRC members.
Steward of the Rock
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If Preston was so prosperous, please explain why they went out of business causing you to take your 25 year career with them to Yellow to get your 30 years in.
Health insurance adds 30% because it is a for profit business. Just the kind you like to invest in. It is also part of the free market that you love. Republicans also give special things to their constituents... nice historical low corporate tax rate comes to mind, but you would rather cry about an 80k dollar a year truckdriver getting a break on taxes for his good insurance, the same you enjoyed for 30 years. The prevailing wage that the government pays for projects is once again you attacking people who are actually more like you then the wealthy whose feet you kiss. FedEx quite simply doesn't do anything better than the union competition, they just take the savings and pass a tiny portion off to the customer to undercut by a fraction and keep the rest for upper management and shareholders. So really the employees get the shaft, but that's ok, your rich friends get enriched at a rate that hasn't been seen since unions formed. You seem to want the best of both worlds. You want to be able to invest your money and make as much as possible on it with few tax penalties, but...you want the poor person at Home Depot to pay a portion of your health care, that to me is disgusting. These other countries that you say have government paid healthcare are far more socialist than the US by nature. They pay much higher taxes, kind of goes against your beliefs on socialism don't you think?
Razorblade
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Preston was quite profitable prior to deregulation throughout the eighties and into the nineties. Preston excelled at the only thing that mattered prior to deregulation, claim free on time service. After deregulation, the cost structure did not allow Preston or the other 600+ union carriers that shut down to compete in the free market.
The sad fact is government equals waste. Some waste people might not like and others won't care about it but they have their own problems with other issues concerning government funds. You got to bob and weave between the issues.
Razorblade
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The income tax is 118 years old. The economy has evolved but taxation has not. The federal tax code is 75.000 pages. It needs to be repealed and replaced with a national sales tax written on a single page. Everybody pays their fair share because the more you have, the more you spend. Everyone pays their fair share because there is no longer an "under the table" economy. The drug dealers, thieves and prostitutes pay as they spend. No hiding income. You spend, you pay. No forms. No reason for government to know how I earn my money. You make $1,000.00, you take home $1,000.00.
Best of all, there is no corporate tax. No corporate income tax means more money to expand and more money for R&D. That creates more jobs. The United States becomes a tax free zone for international business. Multi-nationals would move here and bring their jobs with them.
Would my rich friends like that, yes of course. Our dividends and capital gains would grow and guess what, we would pay the taxes when we spend that extra cash. The non profit charities would thrive because it's the top 10% who fund them. You would hate that because you hate anyone who has more than you. You believe we don't deserve our money and should share with you. Guess what, we are rich because we never depended on a paycheck to generate wealth. We saved, invested and did without in the early years so we could prosper later in life. Even today, my two cars are a 2005 and a 2013. No sympathy for people making $100,000 a year with free healthcare, don't fund their retirement and complain about the 25% pension. Not when those same people can afford a new lease car every three years and loans for boats, campers and homes they don't need. You believe all business is evil and should only be concerned with giving you a job that covers your every want and need until you're dead. Indeed their is plenty of greed in America but it's not corporate.
You are making a lot of assumptions about me. I too agree with you about a national sales tax, I've been saying it for years for the very reason you say, but that is not the system we are under. Lobby for it, I would support you. I don't mean lobby on truckingboards either, I mean real lobbying. I don't envy anyone or hate anyone with more than me, wrong again sir. What I have is all mine and I'm proud of it. I would love for you to find a quote saying about sharing with me, I have plenty for I have saved. What I do say is the government screwed up these pensions because they have known for years about it and have done zip. Its been known for at least 20 years and no one did anything about changing any rules. That is why I believe in Butch Lewis. I'm a current participant and what you tell me is it is my tough luck when everybody knew, even someone like you who should have raised a voice in your many union positions. For your information I have never bought a brand new car, boat (I had one that I paid $2500 for at one time), never had a camper, and live in the house I purchased before I was 30 and paid for before 50. I don't believe that business is there to give me a job until I'm dead but I do pay into a pension fund so I expect that. I also hope you aren't saying corporations aren't greedy, because if you really believe that you can start the drug business in your new economy. Like I said you assume a lot and you know the saying there, and I believe you succeeded.
My children have pieces of paper from fancy colleges that say they don't have to get dirt under their fingernails like their dad! I think the only long shot of a hope for the Union is XPO.
Let's face it, times have changed and this new younger generation do not want to drive trucks. In our days these jobs had a lot to offer, but now they are going to struggle to attract new employees.
Why should anyone be concerned about current working members and their pension? Current members overwhelmingly ratified a contract with NO mention of contributions to the Central States Pension. They sold out for a raise and that is all they could see, they said to hell with those of us that worked 30 or more years. Now we have to have the Socialist Democrats bail out our pension because current members chased the carrot.
Without being to much of a smart ass, I think if you absolutely feel that way, and you are a principal based man (or woman) , then you should reject your monthly stipend from the pension fund, and donate it to a cause you can get behind. If you had the wherewithal to actually put your money where your mouth is, you’d be a hero amongst your peers who agree with your line of judgement. Just saying.. Regardless, take care ..