Autism and Employment (another PennSilverTaco thread)!

That second video must be old, because the truck sounds like a diesel, and every UPS truck I've ridden in over the last week runs on natural gas; they're actually called package cars, even though they are about as far from a car as you can get, and ride so rough that my Tacoma feels like an early nineties Cadillac by comparison! Until less than a decade ago, there were still a few stick shift package cars on the road, but these have all vanished; I learned that these older package cars, which had the same basic design since the 1960s, also had manual steering! All three trucks that I have ridden in say "NATURAL GAS VEHICLE" on the sides, but I have seen trucks that do not have this lettering on them, and they do not sound like diesels so I am assuming that have a regular gas V8. All three of the trucks I've ridden in are built on a Freightliner chassis, according to the logo on the steering wheel and dash. All of the trucks that I've ridden in also have automatic transmissions, and while they do have power steering and power antilock brakes, they do not have much else. All three of the drivers I've been with have said their trucks have open rear differentials and absolutely suck in the snow, and I do not believe the trucks have traction control. They have backup cameras and heaters, but that's about all for creature comforts. The union representing UPS drivers recently mandated that UPS package cars be equipped with A/C, but most of the fleet has been grandfathered in and does not have A/C. None of the three trucks I rode in last week had A/C, and one of the drivers told me that the hub I work out of ordered a bunch of new trucks right before the union mandate, and none of those have A/C. Thankfully, A/C is not really needed right now!

 

UPS is a good company for certain people.
The town I grew up in had a big hub there.
I knew, and still know, some of the people that work there.

The expectations are high for their employees.
They are pretty much a no excuse company.
You show up every day, work HARD every day, and maintain a clean driving record (if you are a driver).
They have always paid really well, but it is a physically demanding job.

You can 100% make a career out of it. And retire with good benefits in 25-30 years (or less)
But you will work hard everyday you are there.......You have to earn that retirement package.

I have one distant cousin that works there as a mechanic on trucks.
And a bunch of "neighbors" that work there. All of them have been there for years.

But like I said, It's not a job for everyone.

 

Kinda hard to live up to expectations when I’ve got a different driver everyday who does things different than the previous driver, and gets annoyed at me for doing things the way another driver taught me to do them!

 

@ABA180
@Bishop84
@Just_A_Guy
@shakerhood
@steelcity2
@Steves104x4

UPS is a great company, and I've got no grievances whatsoever with the company, but I'm beginning to think that it is not for me; I'm not fast enough. I do my best, but I am not fast enough. The driver I've spent the most time with wrestled in high school and is very fast. He is nice, but he has told me many times that he prefers not having a helper. Running packages to houses is a constant balance between getting to and from the truck in a timely manner, and trying not to fall on my ass. Most importantly, permanent jobs are really hard to get at UPS.

Most importantly, I was told that I would be working 9am to 5pm, Monday through Friday with some Saturdays. The most I've ever gotten is three days in a week, and I'm lucky if I get a 5-hour shift; I get paid $21 per hour, and I get paid weekly instead of every two weeks, but I'm still making less than what I made at that shitty nursing home. Luckily, I paid all my most important bills ahead of time, and I've been supplementing my income by scrapping.

I was texting with @ColoradoTJ the other day, and he thinks that I should make scrapping permanent; I agree wholeheartedly the more I think about it!

 

I agree. You seem to have a knack for the scrap.
You also seem to like doing it. and you know how to break it down for the most profit.

As for UPS, I understand that.
Not everyone is fit for every job.

I am NOT fit to be a mechanic. PERIOD.
I hate it. I hate everything about it but diagnosing it.
I LOVE to figure out what's wrong with a car. But the fixing it.....Not so much.

I honestly think I could do UPS.
Not to brag. But I do think I'd be plenty fast enough at that job.
That's one of the the reasons I run the string trimmers in the lawn service.
I'm fast(er) and I HATE stopping for breaks if the job isn't "done".

My BIGGEST issue. I like to talk.
And I can let time slip away from me.
So I might get myself into trouble if I worked at UPS and a customer wanted to "talk".

 

@6 gearT444E
@ABA180
@Bishop84
@ColoradoTJ
@Just_A_Guy
@Lt. Dangle
@shakerhood
@steelcity2
@Steves104x4

I hated the dishwashing job practically from day one; I'd say it was tolerable for about the first week, but after my first weekend there when I had to work back-to-back double shifts, I was ready to put in my two weeks. Then, the transmission in my truck started to give out after 203K trouble-free miles, and I wanted to go to Carlisle; I put my foot down about working the dreaded 12-hours shifts and got my way, and put up with it for almost five months! The pay wasn't bad, and I loved my immediate bosses. However, I was the youngest dishwasher/utility worker they had. The other full-time guy was 58, while the two part-time guys were 55 and 62, respectively. I have worked the equivalent of full-time hours before, by working two part-time jobs at the same time, and having numerous side hustles like DoorDash and scrapping. I'd say that until 2021, this was just fine.

Seeing these guys in their 50s and 60s washing dishes made me depressed, and I worried about being stuck with the job for years; I only took the job for two reasons...

The first reason was that I needed a job because I needed money. The second reason was that Amanda was already working there and it was convenient; I did not apply for this job, and Amanda had probably been working there for about two months (maybe a little less) when I was offered a job there...

That's right, I was offered the job. More specifically, one of Amanda's managers told her to beg me to take the job because they were so short-staffed. All I had to do was pass a background check, and the job was mine, plus I would get the first weekend off in August so Amanda and I could go to the Carlisle Truck Nationals. Initially, I was ready to work until at least the spring of 2025. Then, I realized how unreliable and disloyal many of my coworkers were. Just one person calling out could throw the entire team into disarray and resulted in more work for everybody; I did not call out once in the time I was there, and Amanda had only two legit sick days (both of which she got paid for). Amanda did not get written up once, which is more than I can say for myself...



In my honest opinion, I was expected to do too much, especially for the dinner shift; I had to wash the dishes and take out the garbage, etc...

I had left the place on good terms, but after the Thanksgiving fiasco, I would rather just put the nursing home and everyone there behind me.

I say once again that this was my first full-time job; I don't mind working forty hours or more per week, but it has to be doing something that I enjoy. I spent four years in the service industry as a barback, and enjoyed almost every minute of it, but I was younger and working in a bar is far different than working in a nursing home!

 

@Lt. Dangle

I forgot to tag you in the above quoted post. How many hours per day, and days per week, did you work for UPS as a driver helper back in the 1990s?

 

NAVMAR wasn't fulltime?

 

Nope. Sometimes I worked four days a week, but that was 24 hours a week; I started out at $16 per hour and was making $19 per hour when I got laid off. I was also doing DoorDash as a side hustle back then, when gas was cheaper and my truck was younger. Scrapping is where it's at now!

 

I worked with a guy in the 1980s nicknamed "501-Joe" that also did UPS on the side. I remember him saying a driver got ill out on his route and had to keep stopping at bathrooms, the boss told the guy not to let it ever happen again.

 

Not to get sick on the route...?

 

Exactly, how is that even preventable.

 

Well.....ok.

I guess people wont be getting their packages.
I don't care who your are, I'm not shitting in my pants for anyone.

 

Thankfully, I have not had to make a number two while on the job, but I've made number one in a bottle in the back of the

 

5 days a week, about 10 to 12 hours per day.

 

@6 gearT444E
@ABA180
@Bishop84
@ColoradoTJ
@Just_A_Guy
@shakerhood
@Speedytech7
@steelcity2
@Steves104x4
@TnShooter

Things have changed, I guess; UPS prefers not to work seasonal helpers more than 4 hours per day now, and I’ve never worked more than five. Luckily, I have three window A/C units and a dishwasher for scrap; I just want to leave the nursing home in my rearview mirror (as does Amanda) and move on to bigger and better things. My biggest expense for the month of December is paying for six months of insurance on my truck; I paid that ahead of time, and I’m getting the oil changed next Friday, so the truck should get me through the next couple of months, making me money instead of costing me money.

In the last year my truck has gotten new tires, new brakes all around, an alignment, a new ABS module, new wheel bearings, and a new oil pressure sensor. As of right now, the only problems with it are…

• Burns a little over a quart of oil roughly every 3,000-4,000 miles.
• Brake/shift interlock is nonexistent, which allows the truck to be shifted out of park not only without applying the brake, but also without the key in the ignition.
• Bluetooth handsfree system works when it feels like it, which as of now is about 90% of the time.
• Dome light flashes in unison with hazards, which is believed to be due to a short in the trailer hitch wiring harness.
• HVAC blower cuts out in random increments for a few seconds at a time (A/C and heat both function perfectly).
• Front brakes squeak when applied at low speeds (getting fixed next Friday).

 

@6 gearT444E
@ABA180
@ColoradoTJ
@Just_A_Guy
@Lt. Dangle
@shakerhood
@steelcity2
@Steves104x4
@TnShooter

Here's my first "UPS Confidential" story; we delivered a package to drunk guy, who promptly fell down the front steps after picking up his package...

For starters, this wasn't in some shitty neighborhood. This was in a brand new Toll Brothers development in Doylestown, consisting of both single-family homes and townhouses; I believe the townhomes start at like $800K (with the single-family homes easily going over $1 million), and this customer was in an end unit townhome. I dropped off the package on the front porch, rang the doorbell, and got in the truck. We drove less than a block away, and got out of the truck, and while the driver was handing me packages I thought I heard someone yell for help; I looked around and didn't see anything, so I went back to getting the next round of packages situated. I heard someone yell for help again, I turned to my left, and that's when I saw an older man on his back on the front steps of the house I'd just left!

I said "Oh shit! He fell!" and immediately ran over. The driver was following closely behind me. The package I'd just delivered was sitting just inside the front door, and the guy appeared to have fallen after putting in the house. From what I could tell, he had fallen sideways and his head was pointed toward the street. His feet were up at the top of the staircase. He was wearing a wifebeater-type shirt and gym shorts, and he stank like a brewery. He was also shaking a lot, like just trembling.

I got behind him and lifted under his armpits, while the driver grabbed his hands. He was bleeding from a scrape on his ankle caused by the brick staircase, but aside from being hammered he seemed to be fine. The driver asked if he needed an ambulance and he said no. As he walked back into the house, I saw a brown stain on his shorts.

I have been drunk before, but not that drunk and certainly not before 1pm like this guy was!

 

Alcoholism is a bad thing.
I helped the neighbor out of his car, out of his driveway, and into his house TOO many times..
I've been covered in blood helping him in.
I even found him laid out on the driveway, where he had been there for about 3 hours in the summer heat.
His wife came home one evening to find him dead in the driveway.

I used to feel bad for him at first. But he never wanted help to stop drinking.
And to be honest, it was becoming a burden getting called to "get him in the house".

I hate he died. But it was starting to an issue I no longer wanted to deal with......
Things have a weird way of working out. Unfortunately, it worked out in a bad way for him.

 

Scary for sure..and yes, can confirm firsthand the bottle will make us do things but we have to decide to do something about it