http://m.dailykos.com/story/2013/12/09/1261419/-Domino-s-workers-fired-for-complaining-about-being-paid-below-minimum-wage?detail=action

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/11/27/3000861/pizza-hut-fired-thanksgiving/
Rudy

The Next Big Class Action: Free Labor

MrFedEx

 

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The Next Big Class Action: Free Labor

FedEx Express is forcing employees to work off the clock or lose their jobs. As demands simultaneously grow to meet SPH, and DRA slows couriers down, management is making it very clear (by OLCC or letter) that SPH will be met, or you are out the door. Faced with the very real threat of losing their jobs, many couriers opt to work through their lunch "breaks" in order to preserve their employment. In other words, FedEx has created a scenario in which many must cheat the system in order to survive the system.

Please know that management already knows that many of you are falsifying, and as long as you don't have a wreck during "break" or get a ticket, they're fine with it. In fact, they LOVE it, because it boosts productivity and makes them look good. Fred likes it too, because you're providing free labor.

The PowerPad statement/disclaimer won't protect FedEx on this one because it is they who are creating the untenable situation for couriers, who are literally forced by an invisible gun to their heads to "perform"...or else. Never mind that tasking someone with more than can be possibly done in that timeframe creates an impossible problem for the employee. Bring stuff back...get disciplined, or get lates...more discipline. In other words, FedEx has created a legal Catch-22 in which the courier is screwed either way. If they take the break and comply, they face discipline and/or termination for not making numbers. If they cheat and work through an unpaid "lunch", they risk termination if something happens during that time period that goes on the record...the ticket, accident, or customer compliment and/or complaint.

FedEx is guilty. Just wait for the suit.

Read more: http://www.browncafe.com/forum/f50/next-big-class-action-free-labor-352941/#ixzz2iSStGevN

On trac contract negotiations begin

On trac contract negotiations begin

Could FedEx Freight Be Next ?

Conway is watching and listening

Posted: 15 Sep 2013 04:03 PM PDT

Conway has stated that the new cameras they are putting in the tractors will be monitored by a third-party. First of all, they must think we are stupid to believe that they are going to pay a third-party to do something that they could easily do themselves. Second, they've put a sleazy scumbag in charge of monitoring the cameras at our yard. This scumbag used to be a driver and now that he's management he thinks he's on top of the world. Well, this man is of the opinion that any accident should lead to termination. Things like dragging the landing gear, something that is often necessary, in this opinion deserves a termination. Dropping a trailer in the yard, a common mistake and an even more common mechanical issue, also deserves termination. Unfortunately with the new cameras they will be monitoring for dragging landing gears with the sound on the camera. Conway is out of control with this. Furthermore, I don't feel comfortable with these scum bugs being able to listen in on private conversations. The first step to getting this kind of garbage thrown out is to organize. Remember, it's our choice whether we want to be union or not. Not Conway, but ours!

New AFL-CIO VP Tefere Gebre : Workers Realizing Their Own Power Can Revitalize Labor In The South

Posted: September 10, 2013 by laborradio

By Doug Cunningham

As labor activists and union leaders meeting in Los Angeles look for tactics and strategies that will succeed in revitalizing the labor movement, an inspiring example has come from an unlikely location – Orange County, California. For decades it has been a Republican dominated conservative area and yet Tefere Gebre has managed to lead a robust local labor movement in that county. The Ethiopian immigrant is about to become the new Vice-President of the AFL-CIO. He says labor can win for workers even in places like Orange county and in southern states, which have long been hostile to unions.
[Tefere Gebre]: “If we can do it in Orange County there is no reason why we cannot do it in Mississippi, why we cannot do it in Alabama, why we cannot do it in Texas.”
Cebre says working people can only improve their lives through organized power, worker power not dependent on laws or on politicians or on politics.
[Tefere Cebre 2]: “It is bringing people together and saying ‘we have to realize our own power’. We can’t count on politicians or pollsters or consultants to deliver that power for us.  That’s what we have done in Orange County and that’s what we’re gonna do in Texas, Arizona, Alabama, South Carolina. I am excited about re-affiliating and re-bringing the south into the labor movement and not writing it off.”

TEAMSTER PROPOSAL FOR FEDEX INDEPENDENT BOARD CHAIR BACKED BY LEADING PROXY ADVISERS

September 12, 2013

Sustained Underperformance, Executive Pay and Governance Concerns Lead To Support For Independent Board Leadership

PRESS CONTACT
David White
dwhite@teamster.org
202-624-8730

(WASHINGTON) -- The country’s two largest proxy advisers, ISS and Glass Lewis, have both recommended that FedEx [NYSE: FDX] shareholders support a Teamster proposal calling for an independent chairman of the board at the company’s annual meeting Sept. 23. Fred Smith, the company’s founder, has served as both chairman and CEO of FedEx and its predecessor entities for more than 35 years.

In its recommendation to shareholders, ISS cites the company’s lackluster performance and continued practice of providing senior executives with tax gross-ups to cover the taxes an executive would incur on restricted stock awards and permitting certain pledging of company shares. Since 2009, Chairman Smith has pledged at least 22 percent of his shares in the company. ISS notes that FedEx has underperformed its global industry peers as well as the S&P 500 in total shareholder return in the 1-, 3- and 5-year periods.

Over the past two years, Smith has received nearly 375,000 shares in the form of stock options valued at more than $14.6 million while the company’s stock lagged behind its peers.

“The FedEx board continues to lavish Fred Smith with stock options worth millions despite the company’s long-term underperformance of its peers,” said Ken Hall, General Secretary-Treasurer of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. “Shareholders deserve an independent chairman of the board with a vision for the future.”

The Corporate Library, a leader in corporate governance analysis, notes that while it is common for founders who have majority control of a company to serve as both chairman and CEO, Smith owns just 6.7 percent. “Certainly a management structure best representing the holders of the other 93 percent of shares would be more sensible.”

In 2012, FedEx created an independent lead director position to address mounting investor support for an independent chairman of the board. In 2011, the Teamster proposal received 36.32 percent support, or 42 percent with shares held by Fred Smith and his family excluded. Long-tenured director Shirley Ann Jackson was appointed to the position. Jackson was a controversial appointment as an effective “independent” leader as she had served under Smith on the FedEx board for 13 years and was overcommitted with other board obligations.  At the time of her appointment, she served on four other corporate boards, 13 board committees and six non-profit boards in addition to her full-time job as a university president. 

Jackson will be replaced as lead independent director this year by Waste Management CEO David Steiner. But ISS notes in its recommendation that at FedEx, the independent lead director position does not provide the “necessary counterbalance to a combined CEO/chairman.”

FedEx Wins Defense Contract

One of the largest package delivery companies, FedEx Corp.(FDX) has won a $171 million contract from the U.S. Department of Defense for small package delivery services for the military. This contract expires on Sep 30, 2014.

FedEx also won a second defense contract worth $49.8 million for overpacking and transportation of perishable products for the Defense Commissary Agency and Defense Logistics Agency. Under this contract, FedEx will deliver perishable goods such as fresh fruits and vegetables from the U.S. West Coast to military locations in Japan, Korea, Guam and Alaska. This contract will be brought into effect on Oct. 1, 2013 and unless extended, will expire on Sep 30, 2014.

Apart from FedEx, the Department of Defense also issued two other contracts worth $171 million each to United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) and Polar Air Cargo, subsidiary of Atlas Air Worldwide (AAWW) for providing transportation services. Both these contracts also expire on Sep 30, 2014.

Apart from gaining new military contract, FedEx also extended its multi-year contract with United States Postal Service (USPS) in Apr 2013. Effective Oct 2013, this seven-year contract worth $10.5 billion would require FedEx Express to provide airport-to-airport transportation for USPS Express Mail and Priority Mail services within the U.S.

FedEx also aims to spread its services across the U.S., Canada and Mexico and capitalize on potential business opportunities in NAFTA (North American Free Trade agreement) markets. The company is boosting its international presence with its acquisitions of Opek Sp. z o.o. (Polish courier company), TATEX (French B2B Express transportation company) and Rapidão Cometa (Brazilian logistics company).

Recently, the company acquired Supaswift and its subsidiaries that offer FedEx Express international services in Southern Africa, gaining direct access to seven markets in Southern Africa. FedEx is also building a new hub in Guangzhou, China, to cater to 100 new Chinese cities within the next five years.

We believe that new contracts wins along with investments in organic growth as well as acquisitions will lead to greater operational efficiency, significant long-term synergies and competitive advantage.

FedEx, which operates with companies such as Radiant Logistics, Inc. (RLGT), has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
 

401(k) Plans Are Making Wealth Inequality Even Worse: Study

The Huffington Post  |  By Mark Gongloff Posted: 09/03/2013 12:50 pm EDT  |  Updated: 09/03/2013 6:35 pm EDT

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401k, 401k Inequality, 401k Plans, 401k Wealth Inequality, Planning For Retirement, Retirement Funds, Retirement Savings, Economic Inequality, Inequality, Retirement Inequality, Wealth Inequality,Business News

Not only is the typical 401(k) a lousy way for most people to save for retirement, it is also making wealth inequality worse, according to a new study.

You're probably aware that in recent decades 401(k) plans have risen to replace pension plans as the first line of retirement savings for millions of Americans. But most of the benefit of these plans, such as it is, has accrued to the wealthiest Americans, argues the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank, using an armada of charts.

That means the poorest Americans are increasingly left to rely on Social Security as their primary source of retirement income at a time when many in Washington are trying to squeeze Social Security benefits.

"The existence of retirement system that does not work for most workers underscores the importance of preserving and strengthening Social Security, defending defined-benefit pensions for workers who have them, and seeking solutions for those who do not," the EPI economists wrote.

First, here is the EPI's look at the steady decline of traditional "defined-benefit" pension plans, charted against the rise of "defined-contribution" 401(k) plans:

One huge problem with 401(k) plans is that they can lose value abruptly when the market collapses, which has happened twice in the past 14 years. Even in good times, though, these plans often trail the broader market, in part because of all of the often hidden fees that steadily drain your retirement savings.

Still, they're not a terrible way to shelter some of your savings against taxation, which makes them ideal for wealthier Americans. And wealthier Americans are more likely to have such plans, anyway, the EPI notes: Unlike poor Americans, the wealthy are more likely to have the spare income to shovel into 401(k)s, and wealthier Americans are more likely to work for employers that are willing to match those contributions.

So along with the rise in 401(k) plans there has been a dramatic rise in the inequality of retirement savings, as this EPI chart shows:

As you can see from the chart, the wealthiest Americans have 100 times the retirement savings of the poorest Americans, who have, basically, no savings.

That means a happy-looking chart, like this one, showing a big rise in total retirement savings:

... is good news mainly for households with 401(k) plans. That group typically does not include African-Americans or Hispanics:

That means minority households have almost nothing saved for retirement:

And you're also out of luck if you don't have an increasingly expensive college degree:

Or if you're single:

So we shouldn't be fooled by charts like this one, which shows retirement savings outpacing income:

Most workers are still woefully unprepared for retirement and will need all the help they can get.

UPS TEAMSTERS NOT IMPACTED BY COMPANY DECISION TO ELIMINATE SPOUSAL COVERAGE

August 22, 2013 Move To TeamCare Ensures Members Maintain Full Coverage

(Washington, D.C.) – UPS announced yesterday a change in its health care coverage for spouses of nonunion employees. Going forward, UPS will not cover spouses of nonunion employees who are eligible for employer coverage at their workplace. This decision does not impact the health care coverage of Teamsters at UPS.

The recently approved national agreement moves more than 140,000 UPS Teamsters from the UPS company plan to TeamCare, ensuring that Teamster member’s health care benefits are protected for the full five years of the contract.

LABOR: Trucking strike ends for Fontana depot

LABOR: Trucking strike ends for Fontana depot08/19/2013 4:11 PM

BY JACK KATZANEK

Drivers and dock workers at a Fontana trucking depot returned to work on Monday, Aug. 20 following a three-day strike, and the disputes between the Teamsters and company officials will be decided by an arbitrator later this week.

Some 250 workers at USF Reddaway’s terminal on Etiwanda Avenue went on strike Friday morning, claiming the company had failed to negotiate a first contract with Teamsters leaders. Workers at a second facility, in Compton, went on strike to protest the Fontana situation.

Randy Korgan, business agent for Rialto-based Teamsters Local 63, said a majority of the workers signed cards in February stating that they wanted to join the union. Workers at other sites for the trucking company already are working under union contracts.

“They refused to recognize us,” Korgan said. “It was obvious the company was just dragging its feet.”

The two sides agreed to allow an arbitrator to settle the issue, which will happen on Wednesday, Korgan said.

USF Reddaway is a regional trucking company based in Tualatin, Ore., and ships goods mostly in California and the Pacific Northwest.

In an emailed statement released through a spokesperson, T.J. O’Connor, U.S. Reddaway’s president, said the work stoppages in Fontana and Compton were not sanctioned by the Teamsters’ national body. He said Monday afternoon that the two facilities “are fully operational now,” and that the company rerouted and reassigned freight to other facilities until the strike ended.

O’Connor added that the arbitration had already been scheduled before the walkout last week.

USF Reddaway was one of several regional trucking companies acquired by YRC Worldwide several years ago. The surge of buyouts loaded YRC Worldwide with debt and affected its bottom line to the point that the company almost ran out of cash in late 2009 and needed to have its debt restructured.

During those years the Teamsters agreed to help Overland Park, Kan.-based YRC Worldwide get on a firmer footing by deferring raises they had contracted for and also allowing the company to defer making pension payments.

Then, in May of this year YRC Worldwide shocked and angered Teamsters leaders by attempting to buy out rival trucking company ABF Freight Systems. ABF eventually pulled out of talks for a merger.

Korgan said the history between the union and parent company did not directly affect the Fontana situation, but he said that the YRC Worldwide’s past actions did weigh on the minds of some of the members.

“How many times can you go to the well and help them,” Korgan asked. “Sooner or later the company has to help itself.”

Follow Jack Katzanek on Twitter: @JackKatzanek and check his blog on pe.com/business

Interesting Reading From The Latest Benefits Mailing

Here's an interesting post from the "Brown Cafe"

MrFedEx

 

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Interesting Reading From The Latest Benefits Mailing

You should have received a mailing in the last week from FedEx Express Employee Benefits. Look on the second page inside the cover to read "The Summary Annual Report For Federal Express Corporation Group Health Plan".

Paragraph 2 of "Insurance Information" reveals the following information: " The total premiums paid for the plan year ending May 31, 2012 were $33,913,039." Next, "Of the total insurance premiums paid for the plan year ending May 31, 2012, the benefits claims paid under such "experience-rated" contracts were $746,652 and the total benefit claims charged under the experience-rated contract during the plan year was $371,757".

Draw your own conclusions.

Read more: http://www.browncafe.com/forum/f50/interesting-reading-latest-benefits-mailing-351979/#ixzz2cW5QHD00

The Threat of Self-Insured Businesses

Despite the Affordable Care Act’s, or ACA, sweeping reforms, which are making health care more accessible and bringing Americans greater protections and increased benefits, people of color may still be at risk of facing the problems that plagued the system before. Under the ACA,millions of Americans have already gained coverage and protections that they did not have previously, saving many from some of the hardships of illness or injury. Unfortunately, employees of small businesses—particularly minority employees—may not enjoy the positive changes that the ACA is bringing to the country. Evidence shows that small-business employers may be considering a practice called self-insurance, which could jeopardize the quality, affordability, and accessibility of health care for employees of color.

READ MORE

FedEx Investor Relations FDX; A Post from the "Brown Cafe"

Dear FedEx Investor,

You need to be made aware that you have invested in a seriously mismanaged company. Short-term, your investment may do well, but long-term, holding FDX shares might be a problem. There is one thing keeping FDX shares high at the present time, and it is the FedEx Ground operating company. FedEx Ground is a contractor-based business model, in which most workers are paid very little and receive no benefits at all. The Federal Express corporation oversees operations, but all drivers are not classified as employees, even though they should be. This is a matter with possibly severe legal implications for FedEx in the future.

In short, FedEx Ground is carrying the water for the other operating companies. Without the low-cost Ground division, FedEx would probably be well on it's way to bankruptcy...it's that poorly managed. Our top executives reward themselves richly, while simultaneously alienating and lowering the wages and benefits for employees who actually work for FedEx as employees. Employee satisfaction and customer service are at all-time lows, and turnover is high and getting higher by the day as employees realize that FedEx doesn't care about them or the way they service customers.

In fact, FedEx does everything possible to cheat customers, through intentional overbilling and by failing to provide services that the customer has paid a premium to obtain. FedEx Express just settled a large case out-of-court for intentional overbilling, and more are probably in the pipeline. Customers who pay a large premium for First Overnight services frequently have their shipments ignored, or diverted to the later PO service. Sometimes this occurs because there simply aren't enough employees under the current cost-cutting business model, or FedEx simply chooses to save itself money by not providing the service as promised. If you try and recover your money, be prepared to be lied to and diverted away from the true reasons you didn't receive the level of service you paid for. This is Standard Operating Procedure at FedEx...LIE to the customer whenever possible and hope they don't follow-up and discover why their package(s) weren't delivered on-time, or perhaps not at all.

FedEx has invested a tremendous amount of money in faulty delivery technology, as system referred to as DRA. This system creates a scenario in which packages are frequently delivered late, or possibly not at all on the scheduled day because it creates routes which are inefficient and/or unable to be covered due to staffing shortages.

If you are a large investor, you need to investigate the leadership of FedEx, because even with all of the cost advantages that have been afforded the company through favorable legislation and a non-union workplace, they continue to underperform from a profit perspective. With few exceptions, they are incompetent, and need to be replaced with knowledgeable leaders capable of generating profit levels consistent with the operational advantages provided them.

From an ethical perspective, FedEx has serious issues. If you are an investor with a conscience who prefers to sink their money into a company with ethical business practices, perhaps you should look elsewhere. Long-term, this lack of ethics has the potential for serious legal costs and large settlements not in favor of the Federal Express Corporation.

How to Start Rebuilding the Working Class

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

With so many obstacles to rebuilding the middle class, where should Washington start? One easy answer: "President Obama could bring some relief and set a good example. He has the power with his presidential pen to require a minimum-wage increase for employees of businesses, including fast-food vendors, that have contracts with the federal government. It wouldn't relieve all low-wage workers, but it would be a powerful place to start."

Fast-food workers echo 'Occupy' spirit - Chicago Tribune 

Another obstacle to rebuilding the middle class: Big corporations are turning a blind eye to labor violations at their franchises. "Big corporations like McDonald's and 7-Eleven exert a lot of control over their franchise owners when it comes to things like branding and the products they sell. When it comes to labor standards, though, it's almost like corporate management doesn't care at all, as two recent cases remind us." If we want a strong middle class, one of the most critical steps is ensuring workers have the right to form a union if they so desire.

McDonald's and 7-Eleven franchise owners push the exploitation envelope - Daily Kos 

We need to change the narrative and attitude in Washington that the working class is just lazy, and that the only people who matter are wealthy corporate donors. The working class is more productive than ever, but the gains from this productivity are going to the wealthiest among us. It's time Washington gets the message that when working-class Americans do better, everyone does better.  We need to raise our voices so that Washington finally gets the message. 

Banishing the Poor, Unemployed and Working Class from the Mainstream Media Implies That They are Worthless - Truthout

FedEx: Ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)

FedEx is the world's largest express transportation company, delivering some 3.3 million packages daily. It includes FedEx Freight, which hauls heavier items throughout the U.S., and FedEx Kinko's, which offers copying, printing, and graphic design services and sells office supplies, and serves as a drop-off point for customers mailing packages. ^[1]

Ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council

FedEx lobbyist Bill Primeaux is on the Executive Committee of the American Legislative Exchange Council's (ALEC's) Commerce, Insurance and Economic Development Task Force as of 2011.^[2] [3] It was a "Vice-Chairman" level sponsor of 2011 American Legislative Exchange Council Annual Conference, which in 2010, equated to $25,000.^[4] FedEx was also the sponsor of the ALEC 39th Annual Meeting Preview Reception.^[5]

About ALEC

ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporations hand state legislators their wishlists to benefit their bottom line. Corporations fund almost all of ALEC's operations. They pay for a seat on ALEC task forces where corporate lobbyists and special interest reps vote with elected officials to approve “model” bills. Learn more at the Center for Media and Democracy's ALECexposed.org, and check out breaking news on our PRWatch.org site.

Recent Controversyhttp://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/FedEx

FedEx’s Philippine Forwarder License in Jeopardy

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FedEx says it will continue to operate domestic and international services in the Philippines without interruption while it waits for the country's Supreme Court to make a final ruling on the legality of one of the logistics giant's air freight forwarding licenses.

The Philippine Court of Appeals in June upheld a January decision by an appellate court that found FedEx's Philippines business is foreign-owned and therefore violates constitutional limits on foreign ownership. As a result, FedEx's International Airfreight Forwarder License, which allows the company to carry goods from point-to-point within the Philippines, was ruled invalid.

In a statement to The Journal of Commerce, FedEx said the case might not be heard by the Supreme Court for "perhaps two years" and insisted its domestic air freight forwarding operations would continue as normal until a final legal decision was made.

The company said a second license covering air transport to and from the Philippines was not affected by the case. "FedEx's license to undertake international transportation to and from the Philippines remains valid and current, and is not the subject of any legal proceeding," the company said.

FedEx's International Airfreight Forwarder License covering domestic air freight operations was issued by the Civil Aviation Board in 2011 and is due to expire in 2016. The January court ruling concluded that domestic freight forwarding should be considered a public utility subject to the constitutional requirement of 60 percent Filipino ownership.

“This court ... finds no cogent reason to revise, amend, much less reverse, the decision dated Jan. 23, 2013,” the Court of Appeals decision said. Although the case was heard by the Court of Appeals in June, the outcome was only made public this week.

"Should the Supreme Court agree with the Court of Appeals, FedEx will not be able to perform air freight forwarding in the Philippines," FedEx said. "This, however, will not affect its license to transport goods into and out of the Philippines. "Further transport of goods from Philippine airports to consignees or vice-versa can be undertaken by subcontractors, as FedEx has done for many years in the past, or by a company established with 60 percent Filipino ownership."I

LOS Close Today

Joe Nuno's Nephew Honored at Dodger Stadium "Veteran of the Game"

Wal-Mart walks away from D.C. storeplans

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wal-mart-walks-away-from-dc-store-plans-2013-07-11?siteid=yhoof2

Cheap Labor Conservatives Shill For Walmart Following Threats Over Living Wage Bill

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/cheap-labor-conservatives-shill-walmart-fo

FedUp with FedEx Anti Union Campaign at FedEx Ground

http://www.americanrightsatwork.org/fedex/fed-up-with-fedex/anti-union-campaign-at-fedex-ground.html

The FedEx Corporation’s History of Opposing Unionization

FedEx’s effort to keep FedEx Express’ ground transportation employees under the RLA is not– as the FedEx website would have it – a battle between rival package-delivery companies, specifically, FedEx Express and UPS. It is rather a battle between FedEx Express and its own employees, who seek the same opportunity to be represented by a union as counterpart employees at other package-delivery companies. In this regard, the actions taken by FedEx are just the latest in a long history of vigorous resistance to efforts by its employees to unionize:

• As early as 1983, a FedEx booklet titled “Managers Labor Law Book” credits the company’s success in large part to being “union free.” 66 On the second page, the booklet declares that the corporate goal is to remain “union free;”

• In 1989, shortly before acquiring Tiger International Airline, many of whose pilots were union members, FedEx’s founder and chief executive officer, Fred Smith, declared: “I don’t intend to recognize any unions at Federal Express;” 67

• In 1993, FedEx distributed to its managers a booklet produced by the company’s legal department titled “Keeping the People Philosophy Alive: Making Unions Unnecessary.” The cover letter said, “Enclosed you will find a new guide designed to provide Federal Express managers with basic information about union avoidance and union organizing;” 68 and

• As recently as 2006, FedEx’s Human Resource Services and Diversity Organization published a paper calling on human resources staff to “co-develop strategy with Labor Relations team on union avoidance,” and listing five “union avoidance strategies.” 69

The Leadership Conference recognizes the right of an employer, including FedEx, to resist unionization by its employees – provided that in doing so, the employer respects the rights of the employees and complies with its own legal obligations. But that has not always been the case with FedEx.

In 1991, for example, the National Mediation Board found that FedEx Express illegally interfered with the representation election for the company’s pilots. 70 In another election, the pilots voted for union representation, becoming the only group of FedEx Express’ employees to unionize. 71

In 2007, The Leadership Conference issued a report titled “Fed Up with FedEx: How FedEx Ground Tramples Workers Rights and Civil Rights,” which documents how another division of FedEx, FedEx Ground – a shipping company that relies entirely on trucks rather than airplanes, and whose employees are covered by the NLRA – misclassifies approximately 15,000 of its truck drivers as “independent contractors.” 72 This misclassification excludes these employees from the coverage of labor, employment, and civil rights laws, including the NLRA, and among other things, denies them the right to form and join unions. Although several courts, federal agencies, and state officials have ruled that these FedEx Ground truck drivers are employees – as one court put it, FedEx Ground’s agreement with its drivers is “a brilliantly drafted contract creating the constraints of an employment relationship …. in the guise of an independent contractor model” 73 – FedEx Ground continues to adhere to this policy in most of the nation.

The tactics used by FedEx in its campaign to keep FedEx Express’ ground transportation employees under the RLA – while aggressive and disingenuous – have not to date been unlawful. But the statement made by Sen. Kennedy in the 1996 Congressional debate to restore the special exception for FedEx Express is as apt today as it was then:

Federal Express is notorious for its anti-union ideology, but there is no justification for Congress becoming an accomplice in its union-busting

Teamsters Ratify UPS Master Contract

http://www.joc.com/international-logistics/logistics-providers/ups/teamsters-ratify-ups-master-contract_20130626.html

FedEx Expands Services in Ireland, Libya, Southern Africa

http://www.joc.com/air-cargo/express-cargo/fedex/fedex-expands-services-ireland-libya-southern-africa_20130626.html

FedExs Profits Drop

http://www.joc.com/air-cargo/express-cargo/fedex/fedexs-profit-dropped-23-percent-fy2013_20130624.html

Employee Survey

SBO received D- on their employee survey. management had meetings yesterday morning. asking us what was wrong.

if they only look outside their window to their yard and see this. their answers are in front of their noses

FedEx Freight to Raise Rates 4.5 Percent

FedEx Freight to Raise Rates 4.5 Percent

A Day Late and $.60 Cents Short

It is that time of the year when FedEx shows us just how much we are worth to them. It was recently announced that the top of scale drivers will be receiving a 1.8% raise. This 43 cent raise will put our hourly wage at $24.93.

Now this is great news until you take a look at the raises that our brothers at UPS will be voting on. Their current hourly wage is $25.70 and their potential contract will assure wage increases for the next 5 years, this is in addition to a 1.95% raise this July that their old contract provided. So let's break down what that is going to look like for them:

 2014: $.50 raise..........................$26.70
 2015: $.50 raise..........................$27.20
 2016: $.50 raise..........................$27.70
 2017: $.50 raise..........................$28.20
 2018: $.50 raise..........................$28.70

 Also, The mileage increase will be .0125 cents per mile each year of the contract payable the first pay period in January of each year, and the last two years shall be split with one half payable every six months(first pay period in January and first pay period after July 1).

 In addition to our measly (though appreciated) raise, my health insurance (Anthem) costs have also gotten a raise. My deductible for my family of 3 has gone from $900 to $1500. My monthly medical benefit deductions have also gone up to about $295 a month.

 So let's take closer look at our raise. A 1.8% raise means about an extra $894.40 a year. $600 of that goes to our increased deductible, which brings our raise to only about $294.40 a year. That is 60 cents short of what I now have to pay a month for medical "benefits".

 So all in all, our little raise obviously leaves us better off than we were before this raise but it still falls short on putting more money in our pockets and keeps us with our heads only barely above the water.

UPS FREIGHT
TENTATIVE AGREEMENT

Memorial Day 2013

Change FedEx to Win would like to thank all of the brave men and women in our military for their service to this country. We know that the sacrifices that our military men and women have made, both in the past and in the present, have protected our rights, including our rights to organize. So from our family, here at Change FedEx to Win, to yours, we would like to extend our gratitude. God Bless you and God Bless America!

Support American Workers This Memorial Weekend

Source: aflcio.org via AFL-CIO on Pinterest

Wealth Inequality in America

Highlights of the UPS Tentative Agreement

Highlights of the UPS Tentative Agreement

Captive Meeting In San Bernardino

This past Tuesday there was a meeting with VP's at FedEx Freight in SBO with only 15 employees who were  to attend. These 15 employees where coached on what questioned to ask, do you believe this crap!?

Everything was fine and dandy until the questions where brought up. Then everything went south. 

What corporate obviously doesn't understand is they are so out of touch with its employees in SBO and all of the West Coast, that their bullshit charade doesn't work here in the WEST!

Stand Up and Be Counted FedEx Freight Employees!

Post from " The Brown Cafe" blog. Mr. FedEx

If and when the new UPS contract is ratified, they will have a solid raise and still not be paying a penny for medical coverage. Us? We're headed the other way. If you consider our non-raise in March, higher insurance costs, and fewer hours, we aren't just falling behind...we are plummeting. Plus, take a look at the latest "Career Opportunities". I didn't count and do the calculations, but a quick scan indicates about 75% of those jobs are PT.

So, if you are new to Fred's Fun Factory, please read the writing on the wall, which says "Leave now, and do something meaningful with your career". I really mean this if you are 40 or under, and please take it from somebody who knows first hand. It is very difficult to find a good job once you are over 40, unless you have some specialized skill, education, or experience. FedEx is NOT going to give you that, unless you are only here to be PT and get some Tuition Refund assistance. Otherwise, you need to head for the exits.

We are rapidly approaching the point where most Express couriers will be making half what a UPS driver does, for essentially the same job. This is counting wages, benefits, and retirement. Wages? About double for a topped-out UPS driver vs. a FedEx new hire. Benefits? Free medical and dental at UPS. You pay through the nose at FedEx, and the providers suck. Retirement? You don't even have one, and UPS has excellent retirement benefits.

FedEx Express, in free-fall without a parachute.