Mesquite hub 2015

[browner89]

Then if you know how to unload you can't argue that you're not trained. So you can only argue seniority. Make sure that you pay attention to which loaders stay and load when they send you out. If they are junior, and know how to unload, you can grieve. You would say, "On July 1, 2015, supervisor Bob sent me to Unload while junior employees Jim and Dan remained in PD1. Jim and Dan are trained in unload. Respect my seniority! Junior employees must be sent out of the area first."

This depends on your building. You can't demand to do a specific job everywhere. Maybe not even anywhere, technically. You can't just tell your center manager you want to work in small sort and he needs to kick out a lower seniority employee to accomodate you.

 

[browner89]

This is incorrect. Seniority is the right to preference. The way it should go is that they ask the senior employees if they want to leave first. Then, if no senior employees want to leave, they FORCE the employee with the least seniority to leave. Ask from top down, force from bottom up. The unloaders go home first because they finish unloading for the night. They do tape ups and then leave. The packages still have to make their way down the belts to the load side and they have to be loaded before the loaders can go home. The loaders also have recycles and irregular that they have to take care of before they leave.

Technically you ask seniority employees if they want to stay, not if they want to leave. If they want to stay they kick them out from the bottom. Same idea, but you don't ask if they want to leave.



Preferred jobs also don't exist everywhere. You work as directed. There are no bid sheets for unload/smalls/pickoff.

 

[Cowboy Mac]

This depends on your building. You can't demand to do a specific job everywhere. Maybe not even anywhere, technically. You can't just tell your center manager you want to work in small sort and he needs to kick out a lower seniority employee to accomodate you.

Correct. You can't force your way into an area, but if an area is short staffed, the highest seniority people have the first choice of whether or not they want to go to that area when asked.

Say you are a loader in PD1. Unload is short staffed so they call your supervisor on the radio and tell him to send one person. The supervisor must ask people who are trained in unload first by seniority from top down if they want to go. If nobody does, he must then force the lowest seniority person who is trained in unload to go. Only when there are no employees in the area who know how to unload may the supervisor send an untrained person.

 

[urbetta]

Shouldn't they try to double ppl first?

 

[Cowboy Mac]

Shouldn't they try to double ppl first?

Yeah. They usually only do that here when the operation is severely understaffed, so in your case yes.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Shouldn't they try to double ppl first?

Yes but this only works when the staffing issues are known ahead of time.

 

[UnconTROLLed]

This is incorrect. Seniority is the right to preference. The way it should go is that they ask the senior employees if they want to leave first. Then, if no senior employees want to leave, they FORCE the employee with the least seniority to leave. Ask from top down, force from bottom up. The unloaders go home first because they finish unloading for the night. They do tape ups and then leave. The packages still have to make their way down the belts to the load side and they have to be loaded before the loaders can go home. The loaders also have recycles and irregular that they have to take care of before they leave.

The way it "should" be and the way it is, are two different things. Our local and UPS have a deal worked out, seniority employees can NOT go home if overstaffed. Seniority gives the right to work, not, the right to not work.

 

[urbetta]

After reading the ups policy book I now know I stand no chance in changing mesquite until we have better management because they don't follow their own rules. Can't expect them to follow anyone elses. It's sad production is more important than the ppl who do the work for that production. Not underpaid but definitely a slave

 

[DumbTruckDriver]

After reading the ups policy book I now know I stand no chance in changing mesquite until we have better management because they don't follow their own rules. Can't expect them to follow anyone elses. It's sad production is more important than the ppl who do the work for that production. Not underpaid but definitely a slave

Slaves don't get paid.

 

[Cowboy Mac]

You're right. You should just give up.

One person can't change Mesquite, but you can at least make it better for yourself by working safely and not exhausting yourself every day. And who knows, maybe your coworkers will see what you are doing and try it out for themselves. Then Mesquite will change, one person at a time.

When I started unloading, right before peak last year, everyone in unload would work their asses off, including myself. Around February, however, I decided to slow it down and work by the methods because there is no use in wearing my body down like that. I started using my load stand, which not one person in unload regularly used at the time. Today, almost all of those guys use a load stand and work at a steady pace because they have seen that I do and don't get into trouble for it.

 

[Cowboy Mac]

Sorry for the extra post. I'm still figuring out how to work this darn thing

 

[Orion Syndicate]

Its because Mesquite has to unload FedEx ground trailers too!

 

[urbetta]

Maybe I'll become sup and try to run an area correctly. If I fail at least we can actually say the ups way doesn't work

 

[urbetta]

And I talked with a part time about this he gave me the load methods and it's a page i have never seen before with stuff I've never been told. I did try it out and I must say it ain't that bad.i was at 360 without really trying

 

[FrigidFTSup]

It depends on the person, but 400 PPH is pretty fast if you're loading. You'd have to be just throwing packages in there to get that number. Forget about load quality if you want speeds over 300. When I was a loader I stayed around 160-180, but I had flawless walls because I used the proper methods.

400PPH is about average for loading. You shouldn't have to throw anything. I'm not saying you're going to have the world's most perfect wall, but you will have a pretty good one. 160-180 is terrible.

You need to be trained to unload. They certify us every 3 months.

No you don't.

He could grieve for being sent out before junior or trained employees. Supervisors must send out TRAINED employees first. I have won that grievance before.

You've won a grievance for something that doesn't exist?

Work as directed applies to tasks that supervisors ask you to do such as load in this trailer, go to unload, etc. It does not apply to pph. This is a quota for management to meet. As teamsters, we do not have a set quota. The contract only states "a fair days work for a fair days wage" or something along those lines. So as long as he is not working at a slow motion pace, he will be fine.

And here I thought you could direct someone to load at a PPH all this time.. No, you have to work as directed as in, if a sup sends you to unload, you go to unload.

I'm not saying i cant unload I just don't want to.

Tough. If the sup sent you there, that's where you have to go.

Correct. You can't force your way into an area, but if an area is short staffed, the highest seniority people have the first choice of whether or not they want to go to that area when asked.

Not everywhere. We have no preferred positions. If I need someone in smalls sort it is whoever is available, not who has the highest seniority.

Maybe I'll become sup and try to run an area correctly. If I fail at least we can actually say the ups way doesn't work

You'll drive yourself nuts trying to do it and unless you have a high turnover it's impossible. If you have a group of guys who have done it forever and trying to go FT eventually they're not going to change. You're the sup of the week. If you have a bunch of college kids who are doing it for beer money and your turnover is high, you can usually work to mold them how you want them.

 

[Cowboy Mac]

Maybe I'll become sup and try to run an area correctly. If I fail at least we can actually say the ups way doesn't work

You don't have to go to the dark side to figure out that the UPS way doesn't work. Just go to the unload for a bit and look at all of the crappy walls and broken packages that we have to deal with. That's because loaders are pushed way too hard by their supervisors to meet their little UPS quotas.

400PPH is about average for loading. You shouldn't have to throw anything. I'm not saying you're going to have the world's most perfect wall, but you will have a pretty good one. 160-180 is terrible.

No you don't.

You've won a grievance for something that doesn't exist?

And here I thought you could direct someone to load at a PPH all this time.. No, you have to work as directed as in, if a sup sends you to unload, you go to unload.

Tough. If the sup sent you there, that's where you have to go.

Not everywhere. We have no preferred positions. If I need someone in smalls sort it is whoever is available, not who has the highest seniority.

You'll drive yourself nuts trying to do it and unless you have a high turnover it's impossible. If you have a group of guys who have done it forever and trying to go FT eventually they're not going to change. You're the sup of the week. If you have a bunch of college kids who are doing it for beer money and your turnover is high, you can usually work to mold them how you want them.

I won't argue with a PT supervisor about PPH. I'll do what works for me and you can go back to intimidating new hires to meet your "requirements". Where I am, you must be trained to unload. Not every hub or center has the same equipment or setup.

If you're saying that what I grieved for doesn't exist, then why do I have a piece of paper from the union that says it does?

Employees should always work as directed, but that won't stop us from grieving later. Everyone who comes to work is busy. It's not like the guy you picked is just sitting down. We're all here to work. So if small sort is a coveted position that you just pick anybody for, the higher seniority people in other areas are either clueless about this or they just don't have the cajones to grieve it.

So basically what you're saying in that last part is that you take advantage of stupid, inexperienced people, in order to make your numbers. But the people who have been here for awhile and know how it works can't be taken advantage of. Why can't you just learn the rules, follow them, and find a way to work WITH your employees to get the work done the right way?

 

[sandwich]

You don't have to go to the dark side to figure out that the UPS way doesn't work. Just go to the unload for a bit and look at all of the crappy walls and broken packages that we have to deal with. That's because loaders are pushed way too hard by their supervisors to meet their little UPS quotas.



I won't argue with a PT supervisor about PPH. I'll do what works for me and you can go back to intimidating new hires to meet your "requirements". Where I am, you must be trained to unload. Not every hub or center has the same equipment or setup.

If you're saying that what I grieved for doesn't exist, then why do I have a piece of paper from the union that says it does?

Employees should always work as directed, but that won't stop us from grieving later. Everyone who comes to work is busy. It's not like the guy you picked is just sitting down. We're all here to work. So if small sort is a coveted position that you just pick anybody for, the higher seniority people in other areas are either clueless about this or they just don't have the cajones to grieve it.

So basically what you're saying in that last part is that you take advantage of stupid, inexperienced people, in order to make your numbers. But the people who have been here for awhile and know how it works can't be taken advantage of. Why can't you just learn the rules, follow them, and find a way to work WITH your employees to get the work done the right way?