Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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USPS Governor Mickey Barnett earned a brief mention in Sunday’s New York Times coverage of the unfolding scandal invoving the Bush Administration’s attempts to fire US Attorneys who had not been vigorous enough in their pursuit of Democratic politicians. See also the mention in Joe Monahan’s New Mexico Politics blog.

Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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FedEx Home Delivery has always used contract drivers, operating their own vehicles (with FedEx logos), to make deliveries. Early on, however, some drivers challenged the contractor model, claiming that they were, in reality, employees of the company, and entitled to organize, and bargain collectively with the company.

The controversy intensified in February 2006, when the National Labor Relations Board ruled that drivers at a Massachusetts FedEx facility were entitled to organize. From the Boston Globe:

“What basically was decided here is that FedEx exercises very substantial control over the employees and the way they perform their jobs,” said Bob Redbord , deputy regional attorney at the Boston NLRB office. Redbord said the drivers work to FedEx schedules and follow FedEx driving and delivery guidelines.”

The drivers subsequently voted in the Teamsters as their bargaining agent. While FedEx has said it will challenge the vote, it has also tried another tactic- making nice. The Wall Street Journal reported in December that Fedex

“recently began stationing 18 contractor “advocates,” some pulled from the ranks of contract drivers, across North America. The company says they are responsible for helping drivers increase their shipment volumes, solve problems they might have with management, and other duties. The company also is creating an executive position in charge of contractor relations, reporting directly to the head of the ground unit. FedEx also has increased fuel subsidies to drivers who operate multiple trucks and is eliminating some fines on drivers resulting from customer claims of failed deliveries.

The issue isn’t limited to Massachusetts- according to Traffic World:

The union effort is part of a larger campaign FedEx is facing over the status of some 15,000 FedEx Ground drivers. The company is fighting nearly 30 lawsuits around the country from drivers who say they are illegally denied classification as employees, leaving them without benefits. A California judge last month reaffirmed his earlier ruling in a class action case that drivers who drive single routes should be classified as employees. Several state labor boards also have taken after the FedEx Ground model, saying it circumvents taxes.

Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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Postage Due- an original comic strip by Mike Morgan

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