Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 i work at a local sign shop, and have been for 3+ years now. this winter we got hit really badly with a dry spell and i have had to take a lot of time off and it is really hurting me financially. i am looking into part-time jobs that can potentially become full-time jobs in the future hopefully. my job at the sign shop has a lot of things about it i don't like, that i'd like to get away from (i technically subcontract because my boss is a lazy jerk and won't get a payroll, so i have to deal with 10-99's come tax time... i get no benefits.. no 401k, etc.) i'm looking for a good job with a stable company. anyways, i am going on tuesday next week up to apply/interview for a part-time fedex driver position (only around 20-30 hrs a week). it has a full benefits package, which means a lot to me, considering massachusetts requites residents to have health insurance or you'll be penalized. pay is better than what i make right now, and it's pretty local. i was wondering if anybody has worked for fedex, or ups/dhl/etc. as a driver/courier? not driving the big rigs transporting across the states but rural deliveries and whatnot. i am wondering if it is a good job or if there is weird shady business behind it. i don't mind the physical part of moving boxes around, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpaceGhost Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I worked at UPS and it was plainly explained to us that they hired from the inside (their words, not mine). Meaning, they'd probably hire someone who had been working there before you for delivery rather then a new hire. I have absolutely no idea what it's like at the other places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpaceGhost Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I worked at UPS and it was plainly explained to us that they hired from the inside (their words, not mine). Meaning, they'd probably hire someone who had been working there before you for delivery rather then a new hire. I have absolutely no idea what it's like at the other places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 i had figured that's what they most likely did, but in this case it might be for full-time driver positions. since this is a part-time job, they might consider outside people but no way of knowing really. i was going to go do the civil service exam and check out jobs with USPS but they just had a test recently and don't have another one scheduled for a long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members James Hart Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 my sister-in-law's guy is a UPS driver. He digs the work. He signed on as a package handler and got moved up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 there are jobs available as package handlers as well, and obviously the pay isn't as good and it's much more labor-intensive work but if the driver thing doesn't work out then i might have to consider it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members James Hart Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Dan moved boxes for just over a year before getting moved to driver. Has been on his own route about 2 years... floated around as a fill in for a couple years before. (I think that's the time line, we talked about it last month at a family GTG) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 cool, thanks for the input. they have an interview/application day tomorrow morning but i realized tonight (at 10PM ) that i don't have the right stuff to wear to the interview. i'm in the process of moving and for some reason i thought i had good clothes but apparently not. i'll be doing it on tuesday instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members justinbass Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 A good friend of mine delivers for FedEx. He got hired as a driver/deliverer, and he loves his job. Go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 A good friend of mine delivers for FedEx. He got hired as a driver/deliverer, and he loves his job. Go for it. thanks hoping for the best. i've been working on saving up money to be able to buy a house (screw this renting business) and having a good stable job like that would really help me out. i am just really, really sick of having to do 10-99 tax forms and having to take my own taxes out of my paychecks and pay at the end of the year instead of getting a return like most people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members justinbass Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Your boss is a dick for giving you 10-99s and not putting you on payroll. Good Luck man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Your boss is a dick for giving you 10-99s and not putting you on payroll.Good Luck man. yup. he does it to cover his own ass and so he doesn't have to pay half of social security or whatever the deal is. that, and he doesn't have to offer benefits, worker's comp, unemployment, etc. it's pretty crappy. he just pays me with a business check at the end of the week and gets to write off my whole income when tax season rolls around. i'm done with that junk. getting out of it now while i still can and before i'm in too deep with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 anybody from the day crowd have any input? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RSBro Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Nothing to help you sadly, except that your boss has a good tax planner. Payroll taxes & penalties will lose you your business if you screw up even a little and get behind. I see it way too often. With proper planning, a 1099 gives you SO much more wiggle room and tax freedom than a W-2 ever could. You just have to know how to use it to your advantage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 it sucks for me since i am the only employee of the shop. it's a small shop (obviously) - just he and i. i figured being his one and only main guy that he'd at least do me well and get me on a good system but apparently he can't even do that. he's just too cheap, period. a lot of time during the winter he doesn't even turn the heat on because he doesn't want to pay for it. there is one AC in the entire shop and it's in his office, so during the summer that's a real treat as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RSBro Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 it sucks for me since i am the only employee of the shop. it's a small shop (obviously) - just he and i. i figured being his one and only main guy that he'd at least do me well and get me on a good system but apparently he can't even do that. he's just too cheap, period. a lot of time during the winter he doesn't even turn the heat on because he doesn't want to pay for it. there is one AC in the entire shop and it's in his office, so during the summer that's a real treat as well. Oh, then yeah I'm gonna have to go w/ you. Most people who do 1099's (at least our clients) go out of their way to take care of their workers; just don't mess w/ all the payroll stuff and let them do their tax planning on their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted February 21, 2008 CMS Author Share Posted February 21, 2008 I worked for UPS for a couple of years in the mid-90's. It's a great company, but you have to understand that as a package-car driver (don't *ever* call it a "truck") you will be a Teamster, and that has its own set of issues. UPS is a VERY conservative company. The culture there is unlike anyplace I worked before or since. It's called "a cross between the Mormons and the Marines" and that's accurate. Just be consistent, keep your mouth shut, and do your job, and you can go very far there. By way of example, I had a boat years ago, and I knew the marina owner where I kept it. One day we got to talking, and it came out that I was a UPS'er. So was he. Started out in the hubs tossing packages. Stayed 26 years. Retired with $2M in his company-funded savings account (they put $26/wk in an account for every employee. You get it on retirement) and bought the marina with the money, for cash. Not bad for wearing brown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brake Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I would love to drive a UPS truck. I work at a gas station now and the UPS drivers come fill up all the time...they seem to like their job. Bomb around in a big truck all day and give people boxes and envelopes...seems fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members misterhinkydink Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 A friend of mine drives one of these for UPS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members B-Bottom Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I applied to be an on call delivery driver for the Holidays a few months back. The HR guy told us straight up how the position and company worked. We would be on call and worked to death for about a month and then fired. Then if we wanted to re apply for a full time position we could. But it would be at least two to three years before we would even be considered for full time. He also used the Marine analogy to describe the company. I've been considering doing a part time stint there as a package handler however. It pays dick but you do get full benefits from day one. I was just hired for a part time 30+ hours a week by Fed Ex Freight running a fork lift. The pay is pretty good and I have a better shot of getting full time in a few months than with UPS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 good to know, thanks for the info guys. now, this whole teamster thing is new to me. i'm not sure exactly what that entails? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members catphish Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I'm pretty sure T. Alan was in the business for some time too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HoldingThsMoment Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I'm pretty sure T. Alan was in the business for some time too. ahh lovely. hopefully he can chime in ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LadyM Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 One of my GFs BF is a UPS guy, been there a long time, good gig for him. Makes for nice quads/glutts for the BF she says. I'm partial to legs. All women get a thrill :love:outta watching the delivery man run up to your house with a package (usually some happy shopping delivery)... never seen one walking before. Always running to make the schedule, thus the great legs;). O... I'm sorry, wait a minute... I think I've digressed:freak:.... AHH! Yes, benefits would be a great thing to have too! Seriously, best of luck:thu:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Apendecto Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 My buddy works for Fed Ex as a driver and HATES it. I worked with him during the holiday rush and helped him sort packages in his truck and keep him moving. His big stop was a mall in Ann Arbor and he had the {censored}tiest loaders available. Packages would be crammed to the brim, things in the back would be for stops he's already done, packages would be trashed, etc. We would park next to a UPS guy and it seemed like they had it easy. If they got over loaded one day, they'd call in another guy. That was impossible with us. He got paid by the package which is good an bad. Other weird things that pissed him off: You have to scan in packages when you deliver them. You have to scan packages when you receive them. If you scan a delivery and a pickup, you get penalized. Too many penalties (for all sorts of stuff in and out of your control) and you loose some of your salary/job. So we'd have to wait in the back until 5 minutes were up to scan them. There are a hundred little stupid things like that and he wants out. Sounds like UPS is better but FedEx, from what I saw, was terrible. Yo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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