Drider_it

I work at Bill and Ralphs here in Louisiana. They are a local well known food distribution cool storage facility. Each day trucks come in and drop of product. At night our crew pulls said product, load it on trucks, and go home.

You have "pullers" who get pick sheets, run around on battery floor jacks and grab all the product from their areas. "Loaders" then set up all the pallets leaden products in nice rows.

Then I enter the picture. I stand out on the dock, which rests at a nice 36ish degrees at all times, and call the listed product for each stop on my sheet.

In theory, the last thing on the truck is the first thing off. Pretty much the novel I call out, you should be able to turn it over and take everything off that way.

And yet the problem stands. I seem lost in a power struggle. I'm not allowed to get onto my crew for laziness, or stupidity. As a "line leader" I understand i have to hold myself above the norm. I can't let them see I'm annoyed at them. That I've lost my temper. Yet how am I supposed to get through to them? You have our main supervisor, then my dad as 2nd then this guy Tony.

Tony is a cool cat. I admire him to a certain degree. Yet he's in charge of the dock crews and overseas that everything goes smoothly each night. He has to distance himself somewhat from others as he is in a different section. He has to deal with how the trucks are being loaded and are they getting done right. Or enough that we can squeak by another day with out a management arse chewing.

90% of our work force on nights is african americans. No, I'm not dogging them at all and I'm not a racist. I'm just honest with my thoughts and words and I dont pull punches. Truth don't like to be heard when that person is singled out. Just in my years of being here in the south, I've noticed that all colors stick with colors. Blows my mind but its the truth. Starts in schools and stays that way. Friends yes but it all comes back to color. My boss and my dad and I are "white" .. though I have a nice tan from the lake a week ago. I come to them and Tony yet I get more done when I go to them. Though its a small change its starting to work with Tony. Tony has been at this job longer but not by much than I have, he sees more then he lets on. He dosen't share this with anyone till he needs to. But everyone hordes wisdom at some point. I do something wrong they go to him. I get a watered down drama story how someone I had to get on to, was done wrong by me.

an example. "Hey I need route 12 set up please." then i get "Hey man, get someone to set it up." at raised tones. Tony sees and hears this, I turn and ask the only other "white" dude out on my crew to set it up. And walk off. Yet I was in the wrong for picking someone to set up even though the one guy had been setting up all night and not getting a fair break.

Fact of the matter is...

My crew consists of 4 people. The caller-- me Two loaders and a pallet wrapper/dude who gets stuff the pullers missed.

While you got the other crew. The caller and 8 guys that help load and such.

While this seems strange it gets better. My crew on average out lifts the other crew by anywhere from 8k to 15k lbs a week.

Average size box weight a night is like 60lbs. You have 40lb chicken boxes, pork boxes that are between 40-80lbs and beef boxes that are up in the 90s at times.

Yet I tear my hair out each night trying to motivate the crew i have to work. We cant fire them or send them home. cuz that would mean the bosses would have to come on the dock.

Then again the owner is stuck 20 years in the past at age 70ish. Average dock pay is 6.50us an hour. The 3 other "factory" like jobs in this town are average of 12bucks and up. Go figure.

But then again you gotta understand the hireing policy at this place. No drug tests, felony records dont count. Pretty much we get the dregs of society. I feel like I'm at a prison half the time. Another reason I don't toss my given "authority" around. Wouldn't be cool to have a knife in my gut outside of work heh.

I cant blame them though. Would bust arse for that kind of pay? I'm only doing it to bid time till we move back to Michigan. I love this job, dont get me wrong.

Its just I can do every single aspect of this place, fill any position. Ive put most to shame. Yet its the calling thats annoying.

I have to call these sheets, visualize a pallet as it would look as I'm marking the pages. It can be only so big. Your pallet has to stay square on all 4 sides.

Placement of the boxes just like tetris is important. You don't stack a case of eggs on bottom with hotpockets then put beef and chicken on top lol.

Then at some point in building them you piss the driver off. They expect at 10bucks an hour, your gonna just load the truck so they dont have to work at all. Some pallets you got anywhere from 8-12 stops on that pallet. With a strange mix of size boxes. They pretty much have to break down the pallet to sort their stops. But a truck that can only hold 8 pallets, 10 if you know the trick (which thankfully I do), can only be loaded just so.

Toss in the mix pallet stops. Say like county market, or sav-a-lots. We pretty much deliver to grocery stores. Once a week we take all night loading for the "mom and pop" stores.

I guess it just gets old every night seeing one crew having it easy while we seem to struggle through. Then I get people that just leave my line at any given time to go "smoke" which I found out last night they are outside hanging out after telling me they had to go to the bathroom. Sheesh.

Yet addressing this dosen't help. If I piss off the crew, they wont load right. All it takes is them being an ass and I'm stuck with a truck that loads like crap no matter how I call it.

Then i get the news my crew grips that I not touching boxes and such. Technically its not my job to touch boxes. Its my job to make sure the truck is loaded right. But they don't look at the fact I'm saveing them back work. I'm getting the pallets done so they dont have to touch at much. Arrangeing product so they don't have to tote that 20 cases of ribs then put on 20 light boxes heh.

I have no idea how I'm gonna go through the meeting today with my bosses and my dad. I'm not knowing for patience or understanding. I got an irish temper that is legend. Which is why the meeting today. I lost it last night with a loader who left my line to help Tony one of my trucks. Then he gets on a lift jack and goofs around on my last truck. Thing is the guy I had to get on to then escalate into a shouting match is a friend. I can trust this guy to a point. Yet here we are almost at blows, due to an oversite of management not letting us know whats going on.

I like calling. Its by far the most challenging job at this place. Its either that or I pull and area and listen to music all night on my mp3 player. But cuz I can do anything at this place, they wont let me do that. Its a waste of my talents they say. I just keep thinking this place is one big Catch 22.

You see two doors before you. Damned of you do Damned of you don't

I guess to boil it down. I just can't figure out how to get underpaid guys to do something the way it needs to be done, with out stepping on their toes and the upper bosses. Trying to find a level zone here is like spawning into a death match 1st person shooter game with a semi auto and everyone else has sniper rifles.

Man and I thought testing bombs for the military would be bad. hahaha

__________________
It means only one thing, and everything: Cut. Once committed to fight, Cut. Everything else is secondary. Cut. That is your duty, your purpose, your hunger. There is no rule more important, no commitment that overrides that one. Cut. The lines are a portrayal of the dance. Cut from the void, not from bewilderment. Cut the enemy as quickly and directly as possible. Cut with certainty. Cut decisively, resoultely. Cut into his strength. Flow through the gaps in his guard. Cut him. Cut him down utterly. Don't allow him a breath. Crush him. Cut him without mercy to the depth of his spirit. It is the balance to life: death. It is the dance with death. It is the law a war wizard lives by, or he dies.

Shauk

well you said it yourself, you've got the experience and other places are hiring for more. Extract yourself from the situation and get paid more in the process.

Family is family, not work.
worrying about who will take your position isn't your problem.

the other option is to stop caring so much about the fallout that would come from you pushing for a real change in leadership and see it for the big picture of how much better things would be.

I mean the saying is true, you gotta break eggs to make an omelet.

DDDDave

Yep, that about says it. If you figure it out, write a book, you'll make millions.


I worked at UPS as a loader in college. We were paid $11./hr. (This was 1983). We busted our asses because we were making three times what our buddies were making flipping burgers. They were able to staff the place with half as many workers. We were dependable as hell and worked like dogs.

I also General Managed a car wash that was similar to your current situation. My turnover was 30%. A month. Completely turned over staff every quarter. I hired and fired somebody it seemed like everyday. I tried paying more money, it didn't help. If people are lazy and unmotivated, money won't make them so.

The two rules of business. There is never enough money. There is never enough time.

Keep your chin up.




Oh, and BTW it's 'niche'

__________________
I am just a simple man trying to make my way in the universe...

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." - Thoreau

"Nothing great was ever accomplished without enthusiasm" - Emerson