>>>>>>>>>>>>>>http://blogs.wsj.com/corporate-intelligence/2013/07/12/twinkies-union-wants-a-new-slice-of-the-cream-filled-pie/
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Workers should not be allowed to earn a fair living wage. After all that detracts from the bottom line of any company. Have them baked in China. They have plenty of ovens.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>Employers should not be allowed to pay a market value wage. That detracts from the Union's share. Better to force the company to fold than to appear to give an inch.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>Oh, please. I am not going to claim unions are pure and blameless but management is no better. Unions came about for a reason, namely ruthless exploitation of workers.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>and those that negotiate in good faith still have an important role, that is not the case with Hostess.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>It's a little ironic in my case because part of my dad's reputation was as a guy who kept the union out. He never did anything unsavory AFAIK. He just didn't want a union in. He didn't like some of the silly work rules like guys getting paid even if they weren't working. But he wasn't a zealot about it. Once he told me that he had more trouble with his bosses than he did with the workers. One of the best conversations I had at his wake last year was with the guy who headed negotiations when they were trying to unionize the warehouse. He said we were definitely adversaries in those negotiations but he always treated you with respect. If he disagreed with you he would tell you he disagreed with you, and why. He didn't talk down to you or threaten you.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>The other guy who was with him at the wake (unfortunately I don't remember either of their names) opened his sport jacket to show me an enormous silver belt buckle. He got it for winning the national truck drivers' rodeo, an event where semi trailer drivers compete in precision driving, driving through cones, parking into tight spots, that kind of thing. He said until your father came along we didn't do things like that. We didn't have uniforms. Our trucks didn't even have the name of the company on them, just the name of the company they were leased from, like Hertz. He said he made us proud to be drivers for Hannaford.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>One of the interesting aspects of Hostess work rules included this gem. When a Hostess delivery person delivered products to a store they were not allowed to stock the shelves. A second person called a pull-up worker was required to perform that task. In addition, there were different pull-up workers for cakes and bread and never should they perform each other's task. ;)
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>It may not be right but this is standard in the grocery business.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>Hmmm, I'm checking with a buddy in the industry. I'll get back to you on that.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Thanks, Jake ;-)
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I emailed him this thread and I asked the question Is it standard practice to have a different delivery man, and stocker for each item type from a company?
>>>>>>
>>>>>>His response :
>>>>>>No, that's not typical.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>There are two basic kinds of product for the stores, warehouse items, and vendor items. Warehouse stuff is centrally located and forms the bulk of the products sold. Obviously any store brand merchandise fits this, but most of the rest of the store does as well. Vendor items are brought by the specific vendor for that item. Mostly this is salty snacks (crackers, chips, jerky), wine/beer, and soft drinks. Every morning you'll see a Pepsi guy, a Coke guy, a 7-up guy, a Fritos guy, a Snyder's guy, a Nabisco guy, a Coors guy, etc. They all come in with their truck, do the invoice dance with the shipping clerk, then wheel the stuff out to the floor and stock their own shelves. There's quite a lot of elbow throwing from the different drivers as they squeeze out competitors and put their stuff in place. The drivers get part of their compensation based on how empty their truck is at the end of the day, so they try to shove as much stuff as they can onto the shelves.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>If Hostess does it differently, then that's Hostess. My company roams over most of the store, but one of the areas we never touch are bread and other baked goods, so I had no interaction at all with the Hostess people.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>For a while we ran a test program where our people would go in and handle the jobs of about 6 of those guys dealing with the little refrigerators at the checkstands that have all those impulse drinks. Each person would have a route of 3-5 stores where they would go through and tidy up those cases, restock, and put in orders to replenish. Right now, the drivers handle that, and because you have 4 or 5 different drivers all dealing with those same little fridges, plus customers rummaging around, those things become a total disaster each and every day. One of the reasons they were looking at having us doing all the stocking was to cut down on the infighting between drivers. As the drivers push merchandise around, the layout of the section gets progressively worse, which means they have to have our main teams come in more frequently to fix it back the way it should be. But, I don't think it really went anywhere. It would require a -huge- influx of new hires that would all be working almost totally independently, and in my capacity as recruiter, I've found that most people can't find their own asses with a flashlight and need constant supervision.
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>Jake, you are not listening to me. I will listen to people but I don't need your friend's advice on the grocery industry.
>>>>
>>>>I am not sure what to make of your response.
>>>>
>>>>Responding to my post regarding the work rules at Hostess governing seperation of delivery and stocking you stated It may not be right but this is standard in the grocery business.
>>>>
>>>>Since I'm not in the grocery business and know little of the day-to-day practices vendors use to stock shelves I decided to ask a friend who is intimately familliar. He works for a national chain and oversees new store setup, daily stock monitoring, shelving model analysis and training. In addition to confirming my suspicions that the Hostess rules are not industry standard, I also found his response informative and entertaining so I decided to post it in full.
>>>>
>>>>What am I missing?
>>>
>>>I was insulted that you didn't treat me with enough respect to take my word for it.
>>>
>>>No big problem. Onward.
>>>
>>>PS -- It's "separation."
>>
>>
>>You're kidding, right? Do you take everyone else's word for what they say and never fact check anything? I've seen you post such responses on here all the time....
>
>No, I wasn't kidding. Yes, I do fact check things. I will come right out and say it -- you can go F yourself.

If you get your feelings hurt that easy, then there is probably no hope for you. Get yourself out of the liquor bottle, sober up and I will accept your apology in the morning...

P.S. The last one to tell me that (Claude Fox) was banned because of it. I hope your not the recipient of that also...