Pre Route Ritual/Routine

[rngri4]

I was just wondering what everyone does each morning before they start their routes. I noticed the drivers in my center all have their own little rituals. For examples: We have one guy that shows up exactly one minute before start time. And another that gets there 30 minutes early and socializes right up until start time. Some people come in and "doctor their loads". Some time it to where they come in right around the time the air is being loaded so they can get a head start on setting up the air stops. Some bring breakfast. These are just examples. I'm sure some people just take it day by day and others do the same exact thing every morning. I'm just a p/t cover driver so it varies for me. Some times I know I'm driving and can plan ahead and sometimes I get the call 30 minutes before start time so each day is different for me. What about the rest of you?

Since I am a dispatch sup I get to work every night around midnight or twelve thirty or so, and start my pointing and clicking. Since I don't have any clue of the routes (as the drivers think) I just put on them what I want until about 6 oclock or so. After 6 I get my but chewed for an hour by my manager as to why I didn't make stops per car, and then it is back to dispatching until driver start time. I guess the fact that I was a State Trooper Sgt for 10 years didn't make a difference, because I still don't know where "anything is." I know this area like the back of my hand, but come about 7:30 or so I start to hear the usual crying moaning and bitc**** outside my door, and I just take it all in, and keep doing my jobs, and evening everyone out. Come Driver Start time, I get a break, not, after this the phone rings constantly, people wondering why they have to many stops etc, what they don't know is that I already took 20 or so off of them. I usually leave work at least 10 - 12 hours after I start, and frankly, I am fed up, lets let the drivers set in the dispatch seat for one hour, because they have no clue!

 

[KRAM]

Since I am a dispatch sup I get to work every night around midnight or twelve thirty or so, and start my pointing and clicking. Since I don't have any clue of the routes (as the drivers think) I just put on them what I want until about 6 oclock or so. After 6 I get my but chewed for an hour by my manager as to why I didn't make stops per car, and then it is back to dispatching until driver start time. I guess the fact that I was a State Trooper Sgt for 10 years didn't make a difference, because I still don't know where "anything is." I know this area like the back of my hand, but come about 7:30 or so I start to hear the usual crying moaning and bitc**** outside my door, and I just take it all in, and keep doing my jobs, and evening everyone out. Come Driver Start time, I get a break, not, after this the phone rings constantly, people wondering why they have to many stops etc, what they don't know is that I already took 20 or so off of them. I usually leave work at least 10 - 12 hours after I start, and frankly, I am fed up, lets let the drivers set in the dispatch seat for one hour, because they have no clue!

Go run the routes you dispatch, every day, heat, rain, snow, deal with customers and so on, then you might see why you "hear the usual crying moaning and bitc****" We are humans not robots. I do know it has to suck to do your job, I see our dispatch guy get reemed everyday also. We call the system that makes up the route EDD here, it needs work, it's not perfect. I know on Mondays EDD is told to cut certain routes out, but EDD does not move the pickups that are within that split therefor you get no time set to your dispatch for them. The usual Monday split I get includes 4 pick ups and one of them is a pain in the rear to pickup as early as the deliveries are done as there are to many packages and would give me no room in the truck. So I have to come back later in the day to an area off route and make the pickup.

Anyways my morning routine is bring two 4oz containers of fat free yogurt and a banana, set in the driver's seat and eat it while looking at the next day air deliveries in the diad.

 

[Brownnblue]

I get to work about one minute before I'm supposed to. I don't even look at my load, truck, or EDD before start time. Why bother?

 

[Passin' By]

I get to work about one minute before I'm supposed to. I don't even look at my load, truck, or EDD before start time. Why bother?

My goodness, there is intelligent life here after all.

Kudos to you B'nB!

 

[teamsterdan]

I try to arrive inside of ten min. before my start time, then procced to my "mr. rogers" routine.....(because I am a pre-load/feeder wash).......I change from my wash boots to my inside work boots, and try to convince myself that "today things will be different" and they usually are....... then for the next 8 hrs. I remember how cool the past 16 hrs were.........HLD....

 

[rngri4]

Go run the routes you dispatch, every day, heat, rain, snow, deal with customers and so on, then you might see why you "hear the usual crying moaning and bitc****" We are humans not robots. I do know it has to suck to do your job, I see our dispatch guy get reemed everyday also. We call the system that makes up the route EDD here, it needs work, it's not perfect. I know on Mondays EDD is told to cut certain routes out, but EDD does not move the pickups that are within that split therefor you get no time set to your dispatch for them. The usual Monday split I get includes 4 pick ups and one of them is a pain in the rear to pickup as early as the deliveries are done as there are to many packages and would give me no room in the truck. So I have to come back later in the day to an area off route and make the pickup.

Anyways my morning routine is bring two 4oz containers of fat free yogurt and a banana, set in the driver's seat and eat it while looking at the next day air deliveries in the diad.

Just FYI I was a driver before I became a PDS, and I am not arguing at all that EDD isn't right, because it isn't, that isn't my job though, we have a "dps supervisor" who is supposed to fix that, and rarely does. However, when someone has a 6 hour planned day on a route, and runs it in 12 hours, therein lies the problem. The majority of UPS Drivers are great people, and some of the hardest workers you will ever run into, however in every center, there are least one or two bad apples that just plain can't do the job. I ran a route for a while, and was able to deliver 100 stops and scratch, however on the same route, with a driver who just bid it, he is only running 60, and it takes him twelve hours, that is my biggest complaint. Don't gripe and moan to me when I can do it better myself, and I am even overweight...lol. Anyway, I agree with EDD at most all centers I have visited the EDD is messed up, but since the dispatch supervisors are either running air, or doing something else, they have little if any time to complete the EDD work, so it falls right back downhill to the drivers, who then get screwed. Basically, corporate needs to realize the fact that EDD will not work, unless the PDS's are given the time to fix it. I fixed one loop last week, we had a driver involved in a wreck, (not his fault) and was on light duty, he came into the office, and with his help, he is running over 98% trace, problem is it took me 6 hours to fix, so how many people here a willing to put in 6 more hours and help with the problems? Any takers?

 

[Schnellfahrer]

I ran a route for a while, and was able to deliver 100 stops and scratch, however on the same route, with a driver who just bid it, he is only running 60, and it takes him twelve hours, that is my biggest complaint.

Just remember to the company its your fault if you get hurt or get in a accident. I look at that sentence and wonder if you can see the smartier person of the two.

 

[KRAM]

Just FYI I was a driver before I became a PDS, and I am not arguing at all that EDD isn't right, because it isn't, that isn't my job though, we have a "dps supervisor" who is supposed to fix that, and rarely does. However, when someone has a 6 hour planned day on a route, and runs it in 12 hours, therein lies the problem. The majority of UPS Drivers are great people, and some of the hardest workers you will ever run into, however in every center, there are least one or two bad apples that just plain can't do the job. I ran a route for a while, and was able to deliver 100 stops and scratch, however on the same route, with a driver who just bid it, he is only running 60, and it takes him twelve hours, that is my biggest complaint. Don't gripe and moan to me when I can do it better myself, and I am even overweight...lol. Anyway, I agree with EDD at most all centers I have visited the EDD is messed up, but since the dispatch supervisors are either running air, or doing something else, they have little if any time to complete the EDD work, so it falls right back downhill to the drivers, who then get screwed. Basically, corporate needs to realize the fact that EDD will not work, unless the PDS's are given the time to fix it. I fixed one loop last week, we had a driver involved in a wreck, (not his fault) and was on light duty, he came into the office, and with his help, he is running over 98% trace, problem is it took me 6 hours to fix, so how many people here a willing to put in 6 more hours and help with the problems? Any takers?

I will never help with setting up EDD to run the route exactly how I run it, not in a million years. EDD has been put into place, so that if we where to go on strike we could be replaced easier with scabs. Sorry I'll have no part in that. I'll run the route, you just make sure you give me the proper time to run it in.

Food for thought. 50 drivers in my center, if each driver complained to the dispatch once a month, you would have 2 drivers complaining every day to you about amount of work on them. That's not bad at all to us drivers, can't we complain at least once a month?

 

[rngri4]

I will never help with setting up EDD to run the route exactly how I run it, not in a million years. EDD has been put into place, so that if we where to go on strike we could be replaced easier with scabs. Sorry I'll have no part in that. I'll run the route, you just make sure you give me the proper time to run it in.

Food for thought. 50 drivers in my center, if each driver complained to the dispatch once a month, you would have 2 drivers complaining every day to you about amount of work on them. That's not bad at all to us drivers, can't we complain at least once a month?

I think I can handle two a day, that wouldn't be so bad . IMO EDD wasn't set up for any other reason than to help a cover driver run the route and to know where to go next. I think it is sort of a big crazy conspiracy to say it has anything to do with a strike. After the last one, the new contract will be in place long before the deadline on the old one runs out.

 

[rngri4]

Just remember to the company its your fault if you get hurt or get in a accident. I look at that sentence and wonder if you can see the smartier person of the two.

I was, I followed all the methods, didn't run, etc.

 

[DS]

it took me 6 hours to fix, so how many people here a willing to put in 6 more hours and help with the problems? Any takers?

How about having each driver come in on a Saturday one at a time .And pay them time and a half to help fix the problems that
PAS or EDD have created.

 

[rngri4]

How about having each driver come in on a Saturday one at a time .And pay them time and a half to help fix the problems that
PAS or EDD have created.

Personally, I think thats a great idea, and I for one would be willing to do it. I would work every Saturday for the rest of the year and into next, just to make some of these drivers here happy. We have some hard working drivers, who have some very valid complaints, but when do I have time? Saturday would be a great idea IMO, and I think it would clear up a lot of issues, that way they could tell me in person, not just sit outside the door and complain.

 

[KRAM]

I think I can handle two a day, that wouldn't be so bad . IMO EDD wasn't set up for any other reason than to help a cover driver run the route and to know where to go next. I think it is sort of a big crazy conspiracy to say it has anything to do with a strike. After the last one, the new contract will be in place long before the deadline on the old one runs out.

UPS hasn't spent millions of dollars to create EDD just for the cover drivers. They don't give a rats about any driver that works there. They want to make sure we can be more easily replaced for strike or even just to fire us, that's the bottom line of it.

I get more mislaods now in one week than I did in a year before this EDD system. Preloaders are expected to do so much more now that they don't have to think what truck and where in the truck a package goes. Matter of fact I would have been fired as a preloader with the amount of misloads in one week in the loop im in, in one year of my preload time. Get it on the truck and out the building is all management cares about. Then when I find one I have to let them know by 3:00. They actually want us to stop what we are doing prior to 3:00 and go through our load and if there are any misroutes on my truck I have to call the center (not send diad message) to let them know if I will be able to get it delivered. This is their way of trying to make me responsible for the misroutes. If I don't do this I will be writtin up and fired. Who misloaded it? Not me, but management puts it on us. Is this time put into EDD for us to stop and go through the load? Nope!We also have a 9.5 hour deal now that we must call (not send diad message) the center by 3:00 and let them know if we are going to be over 9.5. OK so now we have 30 min spent going through our load to find misroutes, that puts me at 10 hours cause you made sure the truck was dispatch with 9.5 hours work, oh and here is 5 OCA for you to do, add another 30 min to the route time, is this figured into EDD? Nope! Now I'm at 10.5 hours work for the day. I wonder why drivers complain?

 

[KRAM]

How about having each driver come in on a Saturday one at a time .And pay them time and a half to help fix the problems that
PAS or EDD have created.

Go ahead and help them replace you. You might want to keep your knowledge to yourself on this one.

 

[rngri4]

UPS hasn't spent millions of dollars to create EDD just for the cover drivers. They don't give a rats about any driver that works there. They want to make sure we can be more easily replaced for strike or even just to fire us, that's the bottom line of it.

I get more mislaods now in one week than I did in a year before this EDD system. Preloaders are expected to do so much more now that they don't have to think what truck and where in the truck a package goes. Matter of fact I would have been fired as a preloader with the amount of misloads in one week in the loop im in, in one year of my preload time. Get it on the truck and out the building is all management cares about. Then when I find one I have to let them know by 3:00. They actually want us to stop what we are doing prior to 3:00 and go through our load and if there are any misroutes on my truck I have to call the center (not send diad message) to let them know if I will be able to get it delivered. This is their way of trying to make me responsible for the misroutes. If I don't do this I will be writtin up and fired. Who misloaded it? Not me, but management puts it on us. Is this time put into EDD for us to stop and go through the load? Nope!We also have a 9.5 hour deal now that we must call (not send diad message) the center by 3:00 and let them know if we are going to be over 9.5. OK so now we have 30 min spent going through our load to find misroutes, that puts me at 10 hours cause you made sure the truck was dispatch with 9.5 hours work, oh and here is 5 OCA for you to do, add another 30 min to the route time, is this figured into EDD? Nope! Now I'm at 10.5 hours work for the day. I wonder why drivers complain?

I'm not even stated that there are more misloads, because I firmly know there are, they have doubled in most centers since pas. Sheet them up, and call them in as such, no big deal, still again...whats your point. When I had them as a driver I sheeted them up as missed, called the center, and told them service would not be made.

 

[rngri4]

Go ahead and help them replace you. You might want to keep your knowledge to yourself on this one.

KRAM you are obviously someone who I am wasting my time with...have a good life, you are the minority it appears of UPS'Ers who think management is out to do nothing but fire them...must be miserable being you, thinking of that every day.

 

[trickpony1]

rngri4-
I'm not in management but I've been around long enough to see what those who are in management are capable of.
I was a preloader '78 to '80. I loaded three cars by rote memory. Today's preloader loads five cars by "knee jerk" label reading. Any maroon could walk off the street and load pkg cars now. I think you will agree that getting those pkg cars loaded is one of the more critical steps of the operation.
The company can sugar coat PAS/EDD any way it wants but I tend to agree with KRAM. I think the company is posturing itself in preparation for a strike in '08.

 

[KRAM]

I'm not even stated that there are more misloads, because I firmly know there are, they have doubled in most centers since pas. Sheet them up, and call them in as such, no big deal, still again...whats your point. When I had them as a driver I sheeted them up as missed, called the center, and told them service would not be made.

You sure like to use the "whats your point" a lot. My point blind man is that there is an hour of my day never accounted for by EDD.

And you just don't sheet packages missed in the center I drive out of. You must have approval to sheet a package missed. That is why you have to call. They expect you to deliver the misloads no matter how far off route it is. If it's a resi stop you will deliver it, about the only one you can get out of delivering is a business stop that will be closed by time you would get there. Things have changed since you have driven and how long did you drive, 30 days? Your like most sups who say they can do the route better, then why did you go into supervision? Face the facts you couldn't handle it, like all the other jobs you have quit.

 

[KRAM]

KRAM you are obviously someone who I am wasting my time with...have a good life, you are the minority it appears of UPS'Ers who think management is out to do nothing but fire them...must be miserable being you, thinking of that every day.

I am by far not in a minority on this. Do you guys get brownie points or a bonus for firing someone? Lil boost to your name to maybe get you higher in the company?

Company treats us like crap, Union doesn't back us or take care of us. That's one of the reasons the APWA is being started. There are a lot of unhappy workers that will not just take it lying down. I have 20 years in at UPS and I damn sure am not going to just sit back and keep taking this crap. Enough is enough! I will protect what I have earned and help build. I don't hate my job, far from it and I want to keep it and not be harassed every day.

 

[DS]

Go ahead and help them replace you. You might want to keep your knowledge to yourself on this one.

I dont intend on being replaced,I just want to work with mngmt and make things work for both of us.I want the AWPA to intervene and get the hoffa regime out.