Fedex ground

[Dro]

i worked for 3 different contractors for 2 years .. 6 months otr with one..6 months otr with another one and a year with another one doing local.

I was giving orders to hook up a set ..one loaded and one empty..when all the sudden I was coming out of the gate from my hub and the last empty trailer dropped... I was disqualified for that....I'm wondering if I really got disqualified from dropping a trailer literally at the hub...I know a couple of guys that have done that and the security guards told them to hook up again and go...they never reported anything..(this is New Jersey by the way..)

I'm moving to California and I'm wondering if I could get hired again I loved that job and I always did everything I could to prevent that from happening but happens when you least expect it...

Any comments or opinions would be appreciated..

 

[bbsam]

i worked for 3 different contractors for 2 years .. 6 months otr with one..6 months otr with another one and a year with another one doing local.

I was giving orders to hook up a set ..one loaded and one empty..when all the sudden I was coming out of the gate from my hub and the last empty trailer dropped... I was disqualified for that....I'm wondering if I really got disqualified from dropping a trailer literally at the hub...I know a couple of guys that have done that and the security guards told them to hook up again and go...they never reported anything..(this is New Jersey by the way..)

I'm moving to California and I'm wondering if I could get hired again I loved that job and I always did everything I could to prevent that from happening but happens when you least expect it...

Any comments or opinions would be appreciated..

You won't be hired again if the DQ stands. See if the contractor will appeal it. Sometimes all it takes to get DQ'd is a local manager with a hair up his as to make a name for himself and suck up to safety.

If you like the job, there are others like it. May like them even more. Good luck.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Would we be having this conversation had the empty dropped on a busy highway?

 

[CJinx]

Dropping a trailer is a DQ if negligence is involved. I saw a LH driver get canned because he had someone else set up doubles for him; he pencil-whipped the pre-check and failed to notice that they were not hooked up correctly, resulting in the back trailer dropping off as he pulled out of the yard.

 

[fedx]

"I know a couple of guys that have done that and the security guards told them to hook up again and go...they never reported anything"

How do you just hook them up if the trailer is on the ground? You can't just use a forklift. You would likely have to get a crane to lift it-at least with a 53' foot trailer. A 53' weighs 12K empty, so I would imagine a 28' would be over 7,000 pounds empty. I doubt a forklift could do it. How do you just hook them up and take off like the security guards said?

 

[Dro]

Believe me when a landing gear is greesed up really good you could crank it up or down with not too much problem that of course if the trailer is empty or you could at least get it high enough to where you can hook up to the other trailer again. I guess these two guys I know got very lucky.

 

[Dro]

I understand that's pure negligence but also things can go wrong anytime anywhere when you Least expect it... i know SAIA gives you two chances depending how it happened ...

 

[fedx]

Believe me when a landing gear is greesed up really good you could crank it up or down with not too much problem that of course if the trailer is empty or you could at least get it high enough to where you can hook up to the other trailer again. I guess these two guys I know got very lucky.

I'll have to take your word for it. I know I've tried raising a level, unhooked 53' trailer that was just setting on the landing gear and it was incredibly hard to crank. I can't imagine one being on the ground and raising it with the landing gear. Maybe with two or three guys helping crank it, it could be done, but I don't ever want to find out.

 

[Dro]

Would we be having this conversation had the empty dropped on a busy highway?[/QUOTE

I'll have to take your word for it. I know I've tried raising a level, unhooked 53' trailer that was just setting on the landing gear and it was incredibly hard to crank. I can't imagine one being on the ground and raising it with the landing gear. Maybe with two or three guys helping crank it, it could be done, but I don't ever want to find out.

yeah and just another thing a lot of fedex ground drivers that do local work around my area raise the landing gear half way up..so yeah..

 

[Route 66]

I'll have to take your word for it. I know I've tried raising a level, unhooked 53' trailer that was just setting on the landing gear and it was incredibly hard to crank. I can't imagine one being on the ground and raising it with the landing gear. Maybe with two or three guys helping crank it, it could be done, but I don't ever want to find out.

Put the handle in the low gear position and it can be done. It takes about 3 days and 37,019 turns - but it can be done.

 

[fedx]

Put the handle in the low gear position and it can be done. It takes about 3 days and 37,019 turns - but it can be done.

You know what? I've never put it in low gear. That explains why it was so hard to raise a level 53' on just the landing gear. I'm so used to never using low gear that I forgot all about it. But you're right, it would take probably 10 times the number of turns vs high gear. Good point that low gear is there for such situations.

 

[Dro]

You know what? I've never put it in low gear. That explains why it was so hard to raise a level 53' on just the landing gear. I'm so used to never using low gear that I forgot all about it. But you're right, it would take probably 10 times the number of turns vs high gear. Good point that low gear is there for such situations.

My arms end up looking like Popeyes arms because the yard switchers will always drop the trailers either too high or too low lol

 

[Route 66]

You know what? I've never put it in low gear. That explains why it was so hard to raise a level 53' on just the landing gear. I'm so used to never using low gear that I forgot all about it. But you're right, it would take probably 10 times the number of turns vs high gear. Good point that low gear is there for such situations.

Yeah, it's a lot like peddling an 18-speed bike up a mile long hill in first gear. The progress is so painfully slow that you start to question if it's actually moving at all. But it beats the hell out of trying to crank the thing up in normal gear. Then I usually try to go in search of the guy who last dropped the trailer and slap his face.