As someone who orders lots of guitars online.. UPS really blows. I would say about 50% of packages from UPS get damaged, the handlers they have just dont care about packages and throw them around like they are nothing, even if it says "FRAGILE" or anything written on it.
I have no respect for anyone who works as a UPS handler. maybe theres a few who are careful but 90% of them just dont care about other people and smash boxes around all day.
I use USPS now only, and I have never had an issue yet. Over 100+ items and no errors, yet under 5 with UPS and issues? Thats bad quality control for a company that charges 3 times what USPS does.
I'm into airsoft, and the stuff we order is sometimes pricey (not like guitars or anything, but i've spent well over 2k/year on it), and at times fragile // semi-fragile. Whenever its been shipped UPS the packages come in good condition and seem to be shipped faster. OTOH, when the retailer ships using USPS, the packages have been banged up a little bit.
I think it depends on local handling and stuff. My UPS loaders and unloaders in the area are probably better then the USPS handlers in the area, while the opposite is true for yours.
On June 29 2010 15:58 FastEddieV wrote: My dad works as a driver for UPS. They have great benefits but as Carthac said, they work everybody hard. You are not generally rewarded for doing your job well - they just give you more work since they assume you can handle it. I say do it, get the job experience, see how you like it. If nothing else while you're waiting to go back to school you have some income. 5 hour shifts sound pretty nice, even if they are physically demanding.
they have this "you've been caught" award thing... they give you a lame card and a gift certificate to somewhere. i don't know how often they do this i think it's kinda random i've gotten 2 so far
After doing community service at a shop that basically delivers furniture and stuff like dishwashers, I knew I could never do that for more than a day or two. It's just exhausting! Maybe it's different with UPS where you can just deliver it to their door, and not have to carry it through the house.
I was a loader for 1 year at the UPS hub in Des Moines, IA.
Now i've been a part time supervisor for two.
The job is hard. I guess i got it right out of highschool as a part time college job and I had never really worked HARD before but..... most of the people we hire don't last more than a month or two. The turnover rate is huge
That being said if you put time and effort and become a badass, it's rewarding and it's like you are paid to exercise for 3 1/2 hours or so.
Work it if you need the benefits or tuition reimbursement ( only offered for supervisors or midnight loaders here ) otherwise you can probably find a much easier less stressful job somewhere else.
Again, if you take this job, you better be ready to work extremely hard.
edit: you will either start out as an unloader or loader.... an unloader is ultimate physical stress, while a loader is not quite as much, but is more mentally taxing and you are held responsible for a lot more as a loader.
If you have the choice and are willing to work very very hard, I would recommend unloading. However, at my hub, unloaders are usually either new very fit guys, or guys that have become really fast loaders and want to transfer.
edit #57
That video is a joke, at least for here. Unloaders are expected to unload at 1250 packages an hour, and the good ones go way faster.
On June 29 2010 19:16 OverTheUnder wrote: I was a loader for 1 year at the UPS hub in Des Moines, IA.
Now i've been a part time supervisor for two.
The job is hard. I guess i got it right out of highschool as a part time college job and I had never really worked HARD before but..... most of the people we hire don't last more than a month or two. The turnover rate is huge
That being said if you put time and effort and become a badass, it's rewarding and it's like you are paid to exercise for 3 1/2 hours or so.
Work it if you need the benefits or tuition reimbursement ( only offered for supervisors or midnight loaders here ) otherwise you can probably find a much easier less stressful job somewhere else.
Again, if you take this job, you better be ready to work extremely hard.
edit: you will either start out as an unloader or loader.... an unloader is ultimate physical stress, while a loader is not quite as much, but is more mentally taxing and you are held responsible for a lot more as a loader.
If you have the choice and are willing to work very very hard, I would recommend unloading. However, at my hub, unloaders are usually either new very fit guys, or guys that have become really fast loaders and want to transfer.
edit #57
That video is a joke, at least for here. Unloaders are expected to unload at 1250 packages an hour, and the good ones go way faster.
I'm really freaked out by the prospect having having to do manual labor for a living. T_T I think I would die in a second as a Scaffold Construction Specialist, and within a week as a Parcel Transportation Engineer. Now being a Keyboard Buttonpressing Professional for a living sounds like a seriously awesome job!
1250 packages an hour? That's 1 package every 3 seconds. How the hell is that humanly possible unless that beltway is moving way faster in reality as in the advertising?
I'd say try the job out, it gives you good experience for a future job, working as a team, working under pressure, and managing your time very well. Also a career at UPS is also an option if you like it. Drivers for delivery companies like UPS make a lot of money right off the bat. 8.50 - 9.50 an hour is a decent starting wage, my first job was $7.00 an hour, now mininum wage where I live is $9.25 or something now.
Its a opportunity, hard to get decent employment nowadays... And since you're still a student, why not go for the experience? Better than working at McDonalds or something.
Since its also part time, its not gonna kill you to put a couple hours in, I would take this job in blink of an eye.
On June 29 2010 23:27 Golden Ghost wrote: 1250 packages an hour? That's 1 package every 3 seconds. How the hell is that humanly possible unless that beltway is moving way faster in reality as in the advertising?
it moves about as fast as the movie. But the unloaded moves a lot faster, with minimal space between packages. (they don't look at the belt, they keep facing the wall and go to town)