soberups
Pees in the brown Koolaid
There was a special PCM the other morning for us drivers in rural and hilly areas who are getting hammered by the record-breaking snow we are having. Automotive bought several sets of "double-rail" chains that fit over both wheels of a dual rear-wheel P700, and managements idea is to have us install the double-rail chains as well as chains on the front wheels so that we can try to make service on some of the thousands of missed packages that are piling up.
There are two problems with this idea. First of all, it takes at least an hour to install all the chains, and we are supposed to wait to put them on until we are out on area in order to avoid wearing them out on the highway. You have to crawl all the way under the axle of the package car...on your back in the snow... in order to hook up and tighten the chains around each inside wheel. It is a job that needs to be done in a garage, not in a parking lot or by the side of the road.
More importantly, however, is the fact that a driver who installs the chains, follows safe driving methods and does everything he possibly can to safely make service on the stops...will still wind up getting charged with an accident and getting a warning letter if he gets stuck. He will still be charged with an accident if his back end slides a foot off of a snow and ice covered driveway and bumps a mailbox. He will still get charged with an accident for driving over a customers lawn that he cant see under a snowdrift....or sliding into a tree branch and cracking a mirror....or bumping into a gate and scratching the fender.
I want to be a safe driver who puts 110% towards getting his customers Christmas gifts delivered. I'm more than happy to bust my ass for 14 hours a day. I'm perfectly willing to crawl underneath a package car on a dark, snowy road to install or adjust tire chains if thats what it takes to get the job done. But it isnt fair to ask me for all of those things, while at the same time holding the axe of a warning or suspension letter over my head for even the most minor, trivial and insignificant incident of damage. I'm not trained to drive in the snow, and P-700's are not equipped with four wheel drive or even a limited-slip rear end. It doesnt normally snow enough here for any of us to become proficient at it. I'm doing the best I can, but stuff happens. UPS needs to be willing to distinguish between a bona fide accident and a minor property damage incident caused be severe weather, and cut the driver just a little bit of slack. Otherwise, why would any driver want to risk his career trying to take care of our customers?
There are two problems with this idea. First of all, it takes at least an hour to install all the chains, and we are supposed to wait to put them on until we are out on area in order to avoid wearing them out on the highway. You have to crawl all the way under the axle of the package car...on your back in the snow... in order to hook up and tighten the chains around each inside wheel. It is a job that needs to be done in a garage, not in a parking lot or by the side of the road.
More importantly, however, is the fact that a driver who installs the chains, follows safe driving methods and does everything he possibly can to safely make service on the stops...will still wind up getting charged with an accident and getting a warning letter if he gets stuck. He will still be charged with an accident if his back end slides a foot off of a snow and ice covered driveway and bumps a mailbox. He will still get charged with an accident for driving over a customers lawn that he cant see under a snowdrift....or sliding into a tree branch and cracking a mirror....or bumping into a gate and scratching the fender.
I want to be a safe driver who puts 110% towards getting his customers Christmas gifts delivered. I'm more than happy to bust my ass for 14 hours a day. I'm perfectly willing to crawl underneath a package car on a dark, snowy road to install or adjust tire chains if thats what it takes to get the job done. But it isnt fair to ask me for all of those things, while at the same time holding the axe of a warning or suspension letter over my head for even the most minor, trivial and insignificant incident of damage. I'm not trained to drive in the snow, and P-700's are not equipped with four wheel drive or even a limited-slip rear end. It doesnt normally snow enough here for any of us to become proficient at it. I'm doing the best I can, but stuff happens. UPS needs to be willing to distinguish between a bona fide accident and a minor property damage incident caused be severe weather, and cut the driver just a little bit of slack. Otherwise, why would any driver want to risk his career trying to take care of our customers?