FedEx contractor revolt?

[It will be fine]

At 3:30pm CT today, I was informed by FedEx Ground that effective immediately I am no longer part of the FedEx Ground contractor network. This impacts our 225 employees, who lost their jobs this evening.

For years FedEx Ground has used bullying tactics when interacting with their contractors to create an environment of intimidation. This move to cancel our contracts is a clear case of a $60 billion corporation silencing anyone with a voice.

As thousands of the small businesses in the FedEx Ground network — which deliver 100% of FedEx Ground’s packages -- faced record inflation and rising fuel prices, I took my concerns public.

My public statements were clearly an option of last resort after months of attempting to work through these issues privately with our FedEx Ground partners. In my letters and videos I called on FedEx Ground to listen to its own network — to understand the degree of financial distress widely experienced among the small business owners — and the broad affirmation from the contractor community invigorated me to continue the push.

Additionally, the interest from the general public and financial analysts has energized me to continue speaking truth.

I knew this was a David vs. Goliath story, and that this outcome was a possibility when I stood up to a company that makes billions and is used to doing things their way. They built their company on the backs of these small business owners, and yet they are wildly unresponsive to the very real financial struggle facing most contractors today.

It is ironic Mr. Smith released a video on Wednesday, Aug. 24 saying he recognized the contractor issues and offering an open dialogue, and yet he has repeatedly declined our contractor community’s requests for dialogue and rejected our invitation for him to speak at Contractor Expo.

That's simply not something a company that talks about caring for its partners and employees does.

I am being forced to pull our small businesses out of the communities we serve, but we are working hard to re-home our employees.

We will continue to stand up for what we believe in and what’s in the best interest of the contractor community. #PurpleFriday

 

[purplelife]

At 3:30pm CT today, I was informed by FedEx Ground that effective immediately I am no longer part of the FedEx Ground contractor network. This impacts our 225 employees, who lost their jobs this evening.

For years FedEx Ground has used bullying tactics when interacting with their contractors to create an environment of intimidation. This move to cancel our contracts is a clear case of a $60 billion corporation silencing anyone with a voice.

As thousands of the small businesses in the FedEx Ground network — which deliver 100% of FedEx Ground’s packages -- faced record inflation and rising fuel prices, I took my concerns public.

My public statements were clearly an option of last resort after months of attempting to work through these issues privately with our FedEx Ground partners. In my letters and videos I called on FedEx Ground to listen to its own network — to understand the degree of financial distress widely experienced among the small business owners — and the broad affirmation from the contractor community invigorated me to continue the push.

Additionally, the interest from the general public and financial analysts has energized me to continue speaking truth.

I knew this was a David vs. Goliath story, and that this outcome was a possibility when I stood up to a company that makes billions and is used to doing things their way. They built their company on the backs of these small business owners, and yet they are wildly unresponsive to the very real financial struggle facing most contractors today.

It is ironic Mr. Smith released a video on Wednesday, Aug. 24 saying he recognized the contractor issues and offering an open dialogue, and yet he has repeatedly declined our contractor community’s requests for dialogue and rejected our invitation for him to speak at Contractor Expo.

That's simply not something a company that talks about caring for its partners and employees does.

I am being forced to pull our small businesses out of the communities we serve, but we are working hard to re-home our employees.

We will continue to stand up for what we believe in and what’s in the best interest of the contractor community. #PurpleFriday

Wow

 

[bacha29]

Like I said before, FedEx treats Ground like hourly employees with none of the benefits for those employees. You're driving FedEx livery vehicles, you wear FedEx uniforms, you follow all their rules they dictate. However, you get no 401K or pension, you get no FedEx insurance benefits, you get no PTO from FedEx. You do all the work of hourly employees with none of the benefits.

Exactly. Whenever I hear contractors talk about "my business" this, or "my business" that or "my business" something else....I simply laugh .

The only time they have something that resembles an actual business is when it comes to the divestiture of risk liability and variable costs...then you have a business, an independent contractor because that's all on you . The rest of the time you're an employee with none of the employee protections offered by state and federal labor laws.

They serves two specific purposes. To provide FDX with "purchased transportation" at bottom feeder rates and to serve as a firewall against the incursion of a union represented workforce.....That's it....nothing more...

Contractors must get back to that reality, comes to terms with it and proceed on the basis of that cold, hard fact. And for God's sake get that "my business" idea out of their heads immediately.

 

[Mutineer]

Either way, it's already rough out there and fedex just threw 200+ open routes into the fire. Sounds like a solid idea. I would assume it might scare some people to back down but it might be something someone else could use to get out also.

Sooo I'm taking a stab at a guess what FedEx just recklessly caused in one swoop:

On Monday, 45k boxes will be rolled over.
About the same amount won't be picked up.
2,600 missed pickups.
Around 100k disappointed recipients and shippers.

 

[bacha29]

At 3:30pm CT today, I was informed by FedEx Ground that effective immediately I am no longer part of the FedEx Ground contractor network. This impacts our 225 employees, who lost their jobs this evening.

For years FedEx Ground has used bullying tactics when interacting with their contractors to create an environment of intimidation. This move to cancel our contracts is a clear case of a $60 billion corporation silencing anyone with a voice.

As thousands of the small businesses in the FedEx Ground network — which deliver 100% of FedEx Ground’s packages -- faced record inflation and rising fuel prices, I took my concerns public.

My public statements were clearly an option of last resort after months of attempting to work through these issues privately with our FedEx Ground partners. In my letters and videos I called on FedEx Ground to listen to its own network — to understand the degree of financial distress widely experienced among the small business owners — and the broad affirmation from the contractor community invigorated me to continue the push.

Additionally, the interest from the general public and financial analysts has energized me to continue speaking truth.

I knew this was a David vs. Goliath story, and that this outcome was a possibility when I stood up to a company that makes billions and is used to doing things their way. They built their company on the backs of these small business owners, and yet they are wildly unresponsive to the very real financial struggle facing most contractors today.

It is ironic Mr. Smith released a video on Wednesday, Aug. 24 saying he recognized the contractor issues and offering an open dialogue, and yet he has repeatedly declined our contractor community’s requests for dialogue and rejected our invitation for him to speak at Contractor Expo.

That's simply not something a company that talks about caring for its partners and employees does.

I am being forced to pull our small businesses out of the communities we serve, but we are working hard to re-home our employees.

We will continue to stand up for what we believe in and what’s in the best interest of the contractor community. #PurpleFriday

After a little digging we come to discover that Spencer Patton is also a hedge fund manager, real estate speculator and owner of a truck driving school along with Route Consultants. So he's not going to have to wait for the neighbors to bring him in something for supper tonight.

In the end he may of actually made things worse for the average struggling contractor whose only income source is from his contract. Clearly the intent of his termination was psychological as much as it was economic.

I told you guys 3-4 years ago to use the hoard of speculators piling into the market as a way to get out. All you did was laugh and make fun of me.....What do you have to say now?

Now comes the take it or leave it deals. And those employees he seeks to "re-home"? They'll just go to work for the contingency locusts/mercenaries who will be brought in grinning like possums . But they'll only be there until the routes they're running will be forcibly loaded onto domiciled contractors.

 

[Fred's Myth]

After a little digging we come to discover that Spencer Patton is also a hedge fund manager, real estate speculator and owner of a truck driving school along with Route Consultants. So he's not going to have to wait for the neighbors to bring him in something for supper tonight.

In the end he may of actually made things worse for the average struggling contractor whose only income source is from his contract. Clearly the intent of his termination was psychological as much as it was economic.

I told you guys 3-4 years ago to use the hoard of speculators piling into the market as a way to get out. All you did was laugh and make fun of me.....What do you have to say now?

Now comes the take it or leave it deals. And those employees he seeks to "re-home"? They'll just go to work for the contingency locusts/mercenaries who will be brought in grinning like possums . But they'll only be there until the routes they're running will be forcibly loaded onto domiciled contractors.

You dissing Patton for diversifying his portfolio, and doing exactly what should be done by every contractor?

Sounds like a REAL businessman to me!

 

[bacha29]

You dissing Patton for diversifying his portfolio, and doing exactly what should be done by every contractor?

Sounds like a REAL businessman to me!

And what percentage of contractors have multiple income streams? You tell me. Dissing Patton? According to press releases from FDX they claim that what he was doing was designed to improve the fortunes of Route Consultants, his FXG route brokerage company. Now if the courts grant standing to their law suit against Patton he may have underestimated the level of sheer vengeance Johnny Dollar Sign has set out to inflict on Spencer Patton.

Patton made have done some good given that he finally exposed to millions the fact that FXG drivers were third party contractor employees. Now if you remember Dano said that people don't care who delivers their packages. If so then why have FDX gone so far as to disguise the fact that they were contractor employees in every possible way they could be disguised? The trucks, uniforms everything was designed to make them look like true FDX employees. Even putting that tiny placard on the truck in the most inconspicuous place possible and in a place that always gets covered up by mud and slop was clearly designed to make them look like the real thing.

Is this a one and done deal? I'm afraid not. And JDS will do everything possible to identify the contractors who were in Vegas for the gathering.

 

[fedx]

Exactly. Whenever I hear contractors talk about "my business" this, or "my business" that or "my business" something else....I simply laugh .

The only time they have something that resembles an actual business is when it comes to the divestiture of risk liability and variable costs...then you have a business, an independent contractor because that's all on you . The rest of the time you're an employee with none of the employee protections offered by state and federal labor laws.

They serves two specific purposes. To provide FDX with "purchased transportation" at bottom feeder rates and to serve as a firewall against the incursion of a union represented workforce.....That's it....nothing more...

Contractors must get back to that reality, comes to terms with it and proceed on the basis of that cold, hard fact. And for God's sake get that "my business" idea out of their heads immediately.

This idea that contractors are "partners" with FedEx was all an illusion. You're not a partner, you're a resource to them to drain everything from, use up, then dump when you're no longer needed. You speak up to your overlord and you're finished like what happened to Spencer. Remember who's in charge here. You're just a serf and you should know your place. How dare you expect your overlord FedEx to share some of their new found revenue increases. They're keeping it all for themselves. FedEx is the scab of the shipping industry. UPS is the model shipper and FedEx is the scab.

 

[bbsam]

And what percentage of contractors have multiple income streams? You tell me. Dissing Patton? According to press releases from FDX they claim that what he was doing was designed to improve the fortunes of Route Consultants, his FXG route brokerage company. Now if the courts grant standing to their law suit against Patton he may have underestimated the level of sheer vengeance Johnny Dollar Sign has set out to inflict on Spencer Patton.

Patton made have done some good given that he finally exposed to millions the fact that FXG drivers were third party contractor employees. Now if you remember Dano said that people don't care who delivers their packages. If so then why have FDX gone so far as to disguise the fact that they were contractor employees in every possible way they could be disguised? The trucks, uniforms everything was designed to make them look like true FDX employees. Even putting that tiny placard on the truck in the most inconspicuous place possible and in a place that always gets covered up by mud and slop was clearly designed to make them look like the real thing.

Is this a one and done deal? I'm afraid not. And JDS will do everything possible to identify the contractors who were in Vegas for the gathering.

You’re believing FedEx press releases? Why?

Should be interesting to see how they cover the mess they’ve made.

 

[zeev]

Notice CNBC has not covered the story at all but a short clip on fox business has over a million views. Kevin Rutherford on the Let’s Truck app gave a review of the FedEx Ground business. He was a line haul with Roadway that became Ground. He did the accounting for many early Ground contractors, he called P&D Ground as paying for a job.

 

[It will be fine]

And what percentage of contractors have multiple income streams? You tell me. Dissing Patton? According to press releases from FDX they claim that what he was doing was designed to improve the fortunes of Route Consultants, his FXG route brokerage company. Now if the courts grant standing to their law suit against Patton he may have underestimated the level of sheer vengeance Johnny Dollar Sign has set out to inflict on Spencer Patton.

Patton made have done some good given that he finally exposed to millions the fact that FXG drivers were third party contractor employees. Now if you remember Dano said that people don't care who delivers their packages. If so then why have FDX gone so far as to disguise the fact that they were contractor employees in every possible way they could be disguised? The trucks, uniforms everything was designed to make them look like true FDX employees. Even putting that tiny placard on the truck in the most inconspicuous place possible and in a place that always gets covered up by mud and slop was clearly designed to make them look like the real thing.

Is this a one and done deal? I'm afraid not. And JDS will do everything possible to identify the contractors who were in Vegas for the gathering.

Ya nothing sells routes like a media blitz about how the profit margins have dropped below zero. You think maybe FedEx is lying a little bit?

 

[bacha29]

Notice CNBC has not covered the story at all but a short clip on fox business has over a million views. Kevin Rutherford on the Let’s Truck app gave a review of the FedEx Ground business. He was a line haul with Roadway that became Ground. He did the accounting for many early Ground contractors, he called P&D Ground as paying for a job.

During it's final live broadcast hours CNBC was focused entirely on the day's 1000 point drop in the DOW. The economy is going to slow quite a bit which is by design. The hope is that it will tamp down inflation without dropping into a full recession. With spot trucking rates falling and news of 2 or 3 major firms suspending operations or having to allow itself to be absorbed by other carriers this week there's likely to be a fairly large surplus of trucking capacity . That won't bode well for Ground contractors when combined with a ruthless cut throat company like FDX who will most certainly siphon off every cent of value they can get off them.

 

[bacha29]

Ya nothing sells routes like a media blitz about how the profit margins have dropped below zero. You think maybe FedEx is lying a little bit?

You don't say? So whatever happened to those "millions and millions" (those are your own words) FDX contracts are going to be sold for?

 

[Operational needs]

You dissing Patton for diversifying his portfolio, and doing exactly what should be done by every contractor?

Sounds like a REAL businessman to me!

What better person to take a stand than one who is diversified, for whom Ground is just one of his income sources, regardless of how small the income? The small time contractors can’t afford to fight FedEx.

 

[It will be fine]

What better person to take a stand than one who is diversified, for whom Ground is just one of his income sources, regardless of how small the income? The small time contractors can’t afford to fight FedEx.

FedEx really couldn’t play this worse. One of their complaints is that Spencer was damaging the goodwill between Ground and its contractors. This move has done far more damage than anything said so far. John Smith is a clown and needs to go, I don’t see any goodwill returning while he is CEO.

 

[bbsam]

FedEx really couldn’t play this worse. One of their complaints is that Spencer was damaging the goodwill between Ground and its contractors. This move has done far more damage than anything said so far. John Smith is a clown and needs to go, I don’t see any goodwill returning while he is CEO.

Agreed. Even if they insisted on viewing Patton as “the enemy”, the old adage remains: “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

But in my opinion, they really missed an opportunity to make a lot of things better going into peak. Feels like a ton of bravado without strategy.

 

[bacha29]

What better person to take a stand than one who is diversified, for whom Ground is just one of his income sources, regardless of how small the income? The small time contractors can’t afford to fight FedEx.

If you think about it Patton may be trying (and this would be a first time ever for a contractor) to go from price taker to price maker. If contractors would only do the contracted minimum and nothing more not afraid to park surplus capacity not embarrassed to see boxes piled up outside under tarps then maybe just maybe you will for the first time become price makers.

Your nemesis will no doubt be contingency contractors prowling all over the country looking for easy scores. But, you guys know how to deal with them.

 

[Mutineer]

Agreed. Even if they insisted on viewing Patton as “the enemy”, the old adage remains: “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”

But in my opinion, they really missed an opportunity to make a lot of things better going into peak. Feels like a ton of bravado without strategy.

Sooo how does FedEx deal with open routes? What happens at yer terminal?

Package and pickup diversion to other routes? Contingency contractors? Temp-agency stooges in U-hauls?

Your nemesis will no doubt be contingency contractors prowling all over the country looking for easy scores. But, you guys know how to deal with them.

This is partly true. If they truly knew how to deal with contingency contractors, there wouldn't be any.

 

[Cactus]

Sooo how does FedEx deal with open routes? What happens at yer terminal?

Package and pickup diversion to other routes? Contingency contractors? Temp-agency stooges in U-hauls?


This is partly true. If they truly knew how to deal with contingency contractors, there wouldn't be any.

Relying on contingency help will get FXG get more packages delivered…into selected ravines.

 

[bacha29]

Relying on contingency help will get FXG get more packages delivered…into selected ravines.

Storage lockers and unlocked dumpsters.