SPHOR

santoape

Member
Any drivers/centers having there sphor certified by a 3 day ride. Our management is riding with us and telling us if we dont meet our sphor we will be terminated. Management is picking the days to ride with you and we are seeing it is the lightest, less miles , less bulk days they are choosing to ride with you. Is this threat going on at other centers across the nation?
 

Jones

fILE A GRIEVE!
Staff member
Around here it's "SPORH" :wink2:
This happens periodically, just do your job and don't stress about it. No one ever got fired for doing their job.
 

dilligaf

IN VINO VERITAS
They have to show you the results of the three day ride. You have to sign off on the results. If they don't allow you to see or to sign off on it then it is not valid. Therefore they can't enforce (they can certainly try to).

If they show you the results, you have the right to add your comments to their results.

I, personally, would be making notes on the paperwork, stating the load was lightened, the miles were lessened, the load was perfected prior to leave time. I would make them initial and I would make them give me a copy of it. If there was any disciplinary action taken as a result of not complying with the SPORH, I would produce a copy of the three day ride. They certainly will not.

There are ways to counteract mgt's attempts at forcing this type of action. You have to be proactive in your actions.
 

onewithedd

Well-Known Member
They are doing it because thier chops are getting busted, for over/unders. Like Jones said just do your job. Stay on trace and follow your methods.
 

brownmonster

Man of Great Wisdom
Not everyone. In the last year I know of 3 drivers in my center that got a 3 day ride. I didn't disagree with it in either case. The job does require a considerable amount of effort. If you don't show it, expect a ride along. One guy went from 2 hours over to scratch, although he is slowly slowing down again.
 

dilligaf

IN VINO VERITAS
Not everyone. In the last year I know of 3 drivers in my center that got a 3 day ride. I didn't disagree with it in either case. The job does require a considerable amount of effort. If you don't show it, expect a ride along. One guy went from 2 hours over to scratch, although he is slowly slowing down again.

Brown, the job does require a considerable amount of effort and personal dedication. It is very easy to (I hesitate to use this word) slack off. I know. BTDT! It was never intentional, just not being aware of it. With some help via a 3-day ride along last year and conversations with with a certain retired mgr (thank you) I have made great strides this last year in improving my times. I still have rtes that I don't know very well and struggle with but the ones that I do know, I do much better with.
 

brownmonster

Man of Great Wisdom
Brown, the job does require a considerable amount of effort and personal dedication. It is very easy to (I hesitate to use this word) slack off. I know. BTDT! It was never intentional, just not being aware of it. With some help via a 3-day ride along last year and conversations with with a certain retired mgr (thank you) I have made great strides this last year in improving my times. I still have rtes that I don't know very well and struggle with but the ones that I do know, I do much better with.

Dill, we all tend to lose the sense of urgency over time, whether it be bad habits or whatever. Good to see you have improved. The job is hard enough without having someone breathing down your neck.
 

whiskey

Well-Known Member
Not everyone. In the last year I know of 3 drivers in my center that got a 3 day ride. I didn't disagree with it in either case. The job does require a considerable amount of effort. If you don't show it, expect a ride along. One guy went from 2 hours over to scratch, although he is slowly slowing down again.
If he was two hours paid over, he would have been under dispatched by 30 minutes, based on a 9.5 day. Because nobody goes over 9.5. And he would have been under dispatched every day. I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. I think you know what happens to pre load soups when they under dispatch a driver. And it ain't pretty.
 

browniehound

Well-Known Member
Any drivers/centers having there sphor certified by a 3 day ride. Our management is riding with us and telling us if we dont meet our sphor we will be terminated. Management is picking the days to ride with you and we are seeing it is the lightest, less miles , less bulk days they are choosing to ride with you. Is this threat going on at other centers across the nation?

It is, but there are certain rules management must follow to "lock" you into a SPORH. I don't know how it is where you are or if you're mis-informed, but management CANNOT "pick and choose" certain days. It must be 3 consecutive days. In other words, if a day is missed the 3-day ride must be started again.

Also (at least here in MA), the AM break must be taken before the 3rd hour and the hour lunch must be taken between the 4th and 5th hour. Then the PM break must be taken before the end of the 8th hour.

Where I'm from, this causes many problems for UPS. First, they stuff these 100% industrial routes with too much work. Then they inform the driver he sucks and needs to improve his SPORH. This is on a route in which the driver does the right thing by his customers and delivers all the packages and takes the bulk of his lunch at the end of the night.

In this hypothetical situation he doesn't mind taking 20 minutes in the middle of the day to eat and 1 hour after pick-ups are over. It becomes a problem when the center decides you're not working hard enough(is it possible???). The 3-day OJS comes and per the contract/union rules during an OJS, lunch must be taken before 1330. Pick-ups start at 1500 and we're sitting on 15 stops and 40 pieces. Half of these can probably be delivered in the .5 hours after lunch and before pick-ups. What is to be done with the other half?

They are either missed (not going to happen) or some poor purely residential driver is going to come and take the work. Its logic like this that leaves me wondering how our great company makes any money. It all stems from the greed of upper management in its hope that many drivers will give up their lunch.

Instead of a company of 80,000 drivers, lets imagine a business with 5 drivers, 5 trucks, and 5 fuel tanks to be filled. I'm the manager for this 5 truck business. My drivers are allowed up to 1 hour of lunch everyday. Driver A calls me and tells me he needs to work 30 minutes into his lunch hour to finish his deliveries. If I come from UPS, the protocol would to have driver B drive many miles and take the work from driver A just so driver A can sit for another 30 minutes twidling his thumbs. We just wasted fuel, labor, and efficiency to satisfy the "almighty lunch hour".

If I owned this company this manager would be fired ASAP! My instructions as manager would be to pay driver A the extra 30 minutes out of his lunch hour rather than wasting the fuel and labor of driver B to do the work that driver A can do just as easily and with less friction. Doesn't this make the most sense?

Why does UPS run its business like this? The only logical explanation I can conjure is that they save more money from the lunch runners than whats wasted in the labor transfer of drivers who actually demand their rightfully earned pay.

Where is UPS' ethics on this issue? I'm never told from the center team to take all lunch and breaks. I'm just told to "record 1hour and 20 minutes of lunch and breaks in the DIAD". Why? Because UPS doesn't care if you take them or not, just as long as you record them.

They know some people will give up personel time to get home to see their family. UPS is preying on these people to obtain free labor. Where is the company's ethics, I ask again?

I'm required to enter 1 hour of lunch in the DIAD everyday. If I only take 53 minutes and record as such I'm disiplined. Why? What other company do you know that does this? If you only take 53 minutes, why would UPS actually care that they doc'ed you for 53 minutes and not the hour that they want to?

The only thing I can think of is they want people to run the entire hour or only take 15-20 minutes and enter the entire hour, thus gaining 40 minutes in free labor.

Can you believe UPS is allowed to get away from this????

Slavery and Free labor ceased to exist in this country more than a century ago. Somehow, UPS has learned how to exploit free labor right here in the 21st century!

Here's to you UPS!

BOOOOOOOOOO!
 

brownmonster

Man of Great Wisdom
If he was two hours paid over, he would have been under dispatched by 30 minutes, based on a 9.5 day. Because nobody goes over 9.5. And he would have been under dispatched every day. I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. I think you know what happens to pre load soups when they under dispatch a driver. And it ain't pretty.

9.5 is not an issue here. This driver doesnt file. I've gone to pick up his Air to bring it in because the Air trailer pulls at 7:20. It was taking him 11 hours to run a 9 hour day. Now he runs a 9 hour day in a little over 9. Nobody goes over 9.5 is a blanket statement that is wrong.
 

dilligaf

IN VINO VERITAS
Very well said Brownie. Bravo.
It is, but there are certain rules management must follow to "lock" you into a SPORH. I don't know how it is where you are or if you're mis-informed, but management CANNOT "pick and choose" certain days. It must be 3 consecutive days. In other words, if a day is missed the 3-day ride must be started again.

Also (at least here in MA), the AM break must be taken before the 3rd hour and the hour lunch must be taken between the 4th and 5th hour. Then the PM break must be taken before the end of the 8th hour.This is something that is not enforced (but should be) on our 3 day rides.

Where I'm from, this causes many problems for UPS. First, they stuff these 100% industrial routes with too much work. Then they inform the driver he sucks and needs to improve his SPORH. This is on a route in which the driver does the right thing by his customers and delivers all the packages and takes the bulk of his lunch at the end of the night. It takes alot of work but any driver in this situation should not allow this to happen. This can be controlled by taking lunches and breaks when they are supposed to be taken. I know........... it is not easy to do.

In this hypothetical situation he doesn't mind taking 20 minutes in the middle of the day to eat and 1 hour after pick-ups are over. It becomes a problem when the center decides you're not working hard enough(is it possible???). The 3-day OJS comes and per the contract/union rules during an OJS, lunch must be taken before 1330. Pick-ups start at 1500 and we're sitting on 15 stops and 40 pieces. Half of these can probably be delivered in the .5 hours after lunch and before pick-ups. What is to be done with the other half?
If the above were to happen then this would not be an issue.
They are either missed (not going to happen) or some poor purely residential driver is going to come and take the work. Its logic like this that leaves me wondering how our great company makes any money. It all stems from the greed of upper management in its hope that many drivers will give up their lunch.

Instead of a company of 80,000 drivers, lets imagine a business with 5 drivers, 5 trucks, and 5 fuel tanks to be filled. I'm the manager for this 5 truck business. My drivers are allowed up to 1 hour of lunch everyday. Driver A calls me and tells me he needs to work 30 minutes into his lunch hour to finish his deliveries. If I come from UPS, the protocol would to have driver B drive many miles and take the work from driver A just so driver A can sit for another 30 minutes twidling his thumbs. We just wasted fuel, labor, and efficiency to satisfy the "almighty lunch hour".

If I owned this company this manager would be fired ASAP! My instructions as manager would be to pay driver A the extra 30 minutes out of his lunch hour rather than wasting the fuel and labor of driver B to do the work that driver A can do just as easily and with less friction. Doesn't this make the most sense?

Why does UPS run its business like this? The only logical explanation I can conjure is that they save more money from the lunch runners than whats wasted in the labor transfer of drivers who actually demand their rightfully earned pay.

Where is UPS' ethics on this issue? I'm never told from the center team to take all lunch and breaks. I'm just told to "record 1hour and 20 minutes of lunch and breaks in the DIAD". Why? Because UPS doesn't care if you take them or not, just as long as you record them.
In fact, UPS would rather that you not take your lunch and breaks at all.
They know some people will give up personel time to get home to see their family. UPS is preying on these people to obtain free labor. Where is the company's ethics, I ask again?

I'm required to enter 1 hour of lunch in the DIAD everyday. If I only take 53 minutes and record as such I'm disiplined. Why? What other company do you know that does this? If you only take 53 minutes, why would UPS actually care that they doc'ed you for 53 minutes and not the hour that they want to?

The only thing I can think of is they want people to run the entire hour or only take 15-20 minutes and enter the entire hour, thus gaining 40 minutes in free labor.And this is exactly why UPS would rather you not take your lunch and breaks.

Can you believe UPS is allowed to get away from this????

Slavery and Free labor ceased to exist in this country more than a century ago. Somehow, UPS has learned how to exploit free labor right here in the 21st century!

Here's to you UPS!

BOOOOOOOOOO!

It's a win/win for the company and a lose/lose for the driver. Not only are you not getting paid for every hour that you work, you run the risk of being disciplined for something that you may not deserve to be disciplined for.

Let's throw another scenario in here shall we Brownie.

Let's say driver A has entered a lunch break from 1300 - 1400. Let's say driver A worked during that time and was injured while in the service of the company. Lets say driver A broke his/her ankle. In the rush of trying to get to the hosp. or doctor the driver did not remove the lunch time from the diad. It later comes to light that the driver was actually supposed to be at lunch during the time that the injury occured. Is anyone following where I am going with this? The odds of something like this actually occuring are slim but it IS a possibility. As a driver, how much are you willing to risk for your job?
 

MobileBA

Well-Known Member
NM contract is clear: A fair day's work for a fair day's pay. SPHOR is only a number, and with good notes and a good lawyer you can pad your retirement with cash courtesy of buster browns harrassement. If you think your in the throngs of an absurd work enviroment get a lawyer on retainer. The lawyer will advise you and guide you.
 

p228

Well-Known Member
The problem with lunch breaks is that UPS is trying to adapt it so it is legal in every state, and it would be, if everyone actually took a lunch. But sometimes, that just isn't realistic.

Despite popular belief, there is no federal law that requires employers offer a lunch break at all. http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/workhours/breaks.htm

The requirement comes in on the state level but each state has differing laws. For example, no lunch is required in PA but in DE one must take a 1/2 hour lunch after the first two hours and before the last two. It seems the one hour require comes from New York's law for factory workers.

Here is a list of the states that require a break: http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/meal.htm

From the Dept of Labor website:
Typical Problems

Problems arise when employers fail to recognize and count certain hours worked as compensable hours. For example, an employee who remains at his/her desk while eating lunch and regularly answers the telephone and refers callers is working. This time must be counted and paid as compensable hours worked because the employee has not been completely relieved from duty.
Source: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs22.pdf

By ignoring the fact that employees are working through their lunch breaks the company is actually violating federal law by failing to compensate employees for it. The company is no doubt saving a good bit of money when people skip their lunch but turning a blind eye to federal labor law violations could prove very costly in the long run.
 
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