FedEx First Year Info for New Hires...
 

As the FedEx Hiring thread is getting a little long winded, I thought I might start a new thread for the new year for the new hires :)

Since we’ve got a couple years of “new hires” now on property with W-2s and possibly holding lines, would some of you all like to share some data with the incoming new hires so we can all make the most educated guess on our fleet choice? I also welcome info from the all pilots willing to impart their wisdom on us.
(I know the system bid was recently, so seats available per aircraft might be useful as well)

Info I think would be useful, please add whatever you would like:
- month/year hired (or roughly when)
- aircraft / base (original assigned or changed)
- how long from DOH to activation (ie how long on training pay?)
- CH in recent years, days flown, RONs, etc
- How was your reserve life? (live in base, commute, crashpad expenses, bid first fly, etc)

- W-2 number would be nice for the first year but it doesn’t need to be public if you don’t want it out here (you can post anonymously if you’d like)

I start on Feb 20 and could not be more excited!
THANKS!

Thanks for adding this thread. I interview next week and hopefully I'll have a reason to come back here and take a look at the information.

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I will be joining you on Feb 20. Good thread idea. -John

I'm also starting the 20th. Does anyone know the lag times between INDOC and sim for the fleets?

Typical seems to be 1-2 weeks, but can be shorter or longer - you can also try to work out a trade with someone in your class if needed.

OK...I'll throw ya some info. I was hired a year ago...

Base...Memphis unless you are asked if you would like a 75 to Cologne. I had someone recently ask me about the MD fleet and base assignment. You WILL NOT get LAX. Not sure about ANC but doubt it. A couple of my classmates bid for and were awarded ANC in the big bid we had last year.

Fleet wise you'll be hand picked for the MD and then asked if you'd like to fly it. Those folks typically are previously type rated in the fleet, flew C17s or KC135s or F18s. This could change but it's how it worked for my class and others I know.

If you don't go to the MD you will be racked and stacked according to the last 4 of your social...highest number wins. They'll then start with number 1 and tell him /her to pick one of the available planes. This varies by class so you could get all 777s, all 757s or anything in between. So I'd highly suggest speaking with someone here to figure out which fleet would be the best fit for you (BTW this will happen on day 1 for the Boeing /Airbus folks so already have your picks rank ordered when you show).

Training also varies. The MD is the longest...don't know what is shortest. After BI (basic indoc which is two weeks) you'll get a date to start training. Some start almost immediately while others wait a few weeks or more. I'd say plan on a two or three week wait time and two months give or take to complete training. Once training is complete you'll start year one pay.

Pay...sorry but again this varies by fleet and your desire to work. If you want to work a lot you can definitely break guarantee. If you want to work min or less by dropping trips or R days you can probably do that too. Reason I mention this is anything you drop gets put into your makeup bank (this stays with you forever and when you use it is paid at whatever pay rate you are currently at). If you can pay your bills and bank some days and wait for year two pay you can then use those hours at your newly improved pay rate...I know several who have done this.

For me I kinda mixed it up between lots of work and min guarantee and $66k comes to mind give or take for year one...remembering tho I started in Feb so that's for 11 months.

Schedule wise again it depends. I was very active in molding my schedule (meaning lots of time spent dropping days,trading trips, dropping trips etc) and was off for the 4th, the entire week of Thanksgiving and my last day in December was the 23rd and I didn't come back to work until the 4th of January. This was with no use of vacation which you won't have in your first calendar year.

Hopefully this helps and welcome aboard! Oh and for those of you who commute get a crash pad secured ASAP as I hear they are in short supply. BTW we have a great jumpseat policy so there is no reason to think you NEED to move here unless you really have a burning desire to live here (they should tell you this in BI and no I don't).

Cheers,

Gas

Great post, thanks Gas.

Gasnhaul- check pm

Replied but I don't have a completely straight answer...

And Mach you're welcome.

I had a week off, the more senior you are the quicker you start aircraft training after indoc.

This next class starting Monday is anywhere from 2 Days off (777) to 2 weeks off (A300) after BI (Basic Indoc).

Couple of thoughts for new hires:

1. Please don't pass on a jet you'd RATHER fly for 2 months difference in training pay verses line flying. You've got plenty of time to make money. I'd hate to see someone pass up a jet they wanted for something "quicker". The real money doesn't show up until year 2. Budget accordingly. Actually, once consolidated, dropping a trip or two and banking the hours to make-up year 2 at almost twice the pay would be a smart move.

2. Mil leave. I flew F-15s for 6 years as a part timer. I get it...doing two jobs is tough. I strongly suggest you NOT take huge chunks (i.e. > 2 weeks) your first year. This isn't about USERRA, or anything else...its about diving in and learning your new job. Get good at your new craft. Showing up and going on 6-12 months of leave for an upgrade or new checkout at your home unit doesn't make it easier for your squadron mates to follow you. We just hired a bunch of corporate guys...and I know they will be solid additions. Any idea why perhaps those guys are suddenly getting the calls and your squadron mates are still waiting for the phone to ring? I'll give you three mother****ing guesses...:mad:

3. Be a professional...on duty and off. Remember the new guy mantra at any fighter squadron..."never pass up the opportunity to shut your hole.." I have a friend who was terminated while on probation. He had some performance issues as a SO...but so do a lot of folks. It was a weird new gig. He probably didn't make any friends, however, in indoc with a few "..that's NOT how we did this at company X..." and "...do we really have get that blazer?" (to Orlando Rosado no less...) during indoc. The well was poisoned. We have had guys on probation and not long after do some pretty stupid ****, or drop their guard for a moment and let the fun of the moment overwhelm their better judgement. Don't be that guy. NOQ on probation doesn't bode well for your job security.

4. Do not take on training alone and accept getting behind the power curve. First 121 gig? Your sim partner doesn't hang out or help you? Your sim instructors aren't as helpful as you'd like? It happens. 90% of the guys just stroll on through training. If for whatever reason you find yourself in the 10%, you won't be the first or the last. DO NOT wait until you are struggling to reach out and ask for help. Your sponsor is a great place to start. Still lost? Email me. We have friends in every training shop, and I personally know a bunch of instructors who have gone to the mat to help struggling students. The fact I made it through it two 727 upgrades, the MD-11, and most recently the 75/76 upgrade indicates we have some great instructors. :cool: I've never been ace of the base in any training--UPT, IPUG, or my airline training. My learning curve is good enough to stay out of trouble, and I catch up pretty fast, but everyone's slope is different. Having a rough week or two in sims is not an indicator of how good you'll be on the line, but might be an indicator of some particular issues you face this week. There are resources and people ready to help--just reach out. Don't be embarrassed if you find it a struggle--you are in the big leagues now and your job isn't to impress anyone-- it is to graduate and get on the line and start making money for your family.

5. Have some fun.:D Bring the spouse to Memphis to enjoy a weekend of food and shopping. Go home on your training breaks and love up on the family. Go to eat with your classmates a couple times a week and make a run down to Tunica one night. Ask lots of questions to guys who have been here a while, and if you don't have anyone in your crashpad or inner circle like that then reach out and find some. Perspective form a guy who has been here a while can be valuable in understand what IS a big deal and what is not. Keep reminding yourself that "training is NOT the line, training is NOT the line..." It gets to be fun, I promise. Remember my old squadron commander's mantra: "Knowledge is good, learning is painful..." Every day you are at FedEx your are moving up in seniority, and you'll get more money, more options, and more time off as time goes by. A corollary is "it will never suck more than it does right now..." If you understand that, you'll motor on through training with smile on your face.

6. Out of order, but rather than studying flows or manuals before class use the time to get your home life in order. Don't try to mix moving or other major live events (weddings, etc) around your training. Get it done, or postpone it until you are on the line. FWIW...I wouldn't pass up a class for almost any event, vacation, etc. Seniority is valuable, and will be valuable for decades ahead. Read "Timing your Exit" for my thoughts on that one...

7. Strap on a humble attitude. Going from leading 10 ship F-15 formations enforcing No-fly Zones in combat conditions or doing Red Flags to doing 2 am sims to learn to be a flight engineer felt like a step down at times. Going out 45 minutes before the Capt and FO to do the walk-around and prep the jet while carrying a coffee jug didn't seem all that glorious at the time. Making 3-4 times what I made as an F-15 pilot last year and having weeks and weeks off for hobbies and family was incredible. I couldn't have done the latter without doing the former, however, and I learned a hell of a lot from some great mentors along the way. Be proud of whatever you did before--GV captain, regional LCA, fighter pilot or airlift God...and take what you learned with you into the new arena. Just remember you can always learn something new, and the flexes and LCAs that are training you are ON YOUR SIDE. When I was doing 4 AM boxes two years ago getting checked out as a 76 captain, the facilities, hours, and infrastructure all sucked (that was before everything moved to the Gucci building. Its mo' better now) It would have been easy to get sour, but every time I showed for the sim the instructor was there at the table, fired up, ready to brief and excited to be there. It sort of squelched any inclination to start whining about the process. These guys were ready--and they were there to help. Give them your respect, attention, and effort and they will get your through.

Again--you aren't alone. Most of you will say "meh"...it wasn't that bad and was kind of fun. I hope so. If not--reach out. There are resources to help. Just be kind to those around you, because they want you to succeed as well. Remember that and you will be just fine...

Not to hijack but I think there's a definite movement away from separated (Guard/Reserve), not retired, mil guys. Of the last 4 guys hired from my previous mil platform, all were retired. No separated guys were even offered an interview. I thought a few years back United had a formal complaint about lack of interviewing/hiring of Guard/Reservists.

Few data points for you.
--A300 MEM assigned...low last 4 SSN
--2 weeks BI, 3 week break, 2.5 months to complete IOE, so roughly 4 months on training pay
--Sat night reserve for 1 month, VTO lines through summer, day reserve NOV, DEC (By choice). Hard line this Month JAN. Probably bounce between VTO and hard lines from here on out with occasional month of Day Reserve. Do not plan on night reserve again for a while.
--W2 for 2016, 3 months training pay, 8 months 1st year pay, 1 month year 2 pay, no extra and a few dropped trips. Low 70s.
-- I commute and it has been fairly easy so far. Only 1 oh crap moment but still made it. Easy commute for me, 1 leg usually on company AC but have 2 other airlines that fly direct to/from Memphis if needed. Use a crash pad about 2 night a month...friend who lives in Memphis spare room. FedEx sleep rooms more often for 5 hours at a time....commute in AM for afternoon launch.
-- Try to pick up company scheduled DHs that connect through my home airport. Went a month without seeing Memphis during the summer.
-- Always a crap shoot if my airport car is going to start. It sits for weeks at a time without being used.

Looking At the seniority list it looks like there is an even split between the new hires. Roughly 75 bodies on each airframe below me. IMHO it comes down to what type of flying you want to do. Long Haul International, Domestic, Mix of both? Day, night? Week on week off, 12 day around the world, AM out and backs, night hub turns? Movement is so fast right now it seems there is no real bad choice. Not going to sit sideways for 5 years at the bottom of the seniority list. Great time to be hired. As others have said, FedEx seems to be a bunch of different airlines with a variety of flying. Welcome aboard.

Albief15 is a bit of a windbag, but I give him a big +1 on all his advice and a double ++1 on the one above. ;) :D

Slight differences from the last few months:

- As of recent, you get a "dream sheet" sent to you to fill out and return prior to Indoc. It just has you rank MEM 77, 76, 75, Airbus one through four. It needs to be submitted 1 or 2 weeks prior...forgot how many. A few days prior to class starting you MAY get an email asking if you want to go to an FDA or IND. The MD-11 guys were given their assignment and told to show up a day prior to get that extra day of seniority. But you know your assignment a few minutes after showing up on Day 1.

- Speaking of the -11, a few new hires have gone to ANC. Not sure if they asked or were just given the assignment, but it can happen.

SF

Great info and glad someone with more recent experience chimed in! Funny how quickly things can change.

As far as the car starting if it's been sitting there is a jumper pack in the AOC for checkout so they have that covered.

Oh and Albie what are these 727 and SO things of which you speak? ;)

Gas

Those accepting the 11 were offered ANC - they didn't have to take it.

He does occasionally "Al Haig" the conversation. ;)

I say we cut Albie some slack. He's one of the smartest guys in the airline hiring business.

I have a lot of respect for him and I really like his attitude ...


:)

Uhhh, if there are guys here who don't "get" the 727 or SO references, they're sure as hell not gonna get the "Al Haig" thing. :D

Just be glad I let any of you play on my blog space....;)

I am in control here....

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lMhN_HjrnFQ

Thanks for all the info guys, keep it coming!

Just received the CJO. Everyone on the property was world class and I couldn't be more excited at this opportunity.

Before I put in my dream sheet for aircraft selection I'd like to solicit for some advice from the contributors here.

Situation: We have our third daughter due two weeks before indoc so mama is going to have three girls at home under the age of four. I will be commuting from the panhandle of Florida(military separation) and was curious to know if you were in my shoes which aircraft you would select at this point in time? I would be excited to fly any of the aircraft, but would prefer the fleet that allows the best seniority progression in order to allow me to hold a line and consolidate my time at home to the max extent possible.

Any and all advice is welcome.

*Hat tip to Albie; the information you have provided both on the forum and ECIC has been invaluable for this guy separating from the military at 14 years.



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Meat-

I'd recommend the Airbus or 767. Relatively quick training, wide body pay, & you will have many people coming in behind you. MD has longer training cycle, 777 you will only be reserve & long trips, & 757 is narrow body pay. Congrats & good luck.

Here's my advice ... it's worth what you paid for it.

My instinctive reaction would be to stay home with the wife, family and new baby. I'd explain to FedEx that I have a "temporary family medical issue" at home and could I please start the next month. Please?

Everybody likes babies, maybe they would understand? But ... FedEx is famous for holding grudges. Would they agree to that? I have no idea. That might be a good question for Albie?

When the same thing happened to me many years ago (at a different airline) the Chief Pilot told me, "Mayday, if your wife and baby are in the hospital then their needs are being attended to and I don't see why you can't come to work." Yes, he really said that to which I replied, "Dan, you must have not understood the purpose for my call. This was just a courtesy call to tell you I was sick."

Brand new employee ... on probation ... that's a tough one. I hate to lose a really good job because I made the wrong decision. Are there other alternatives? Maybe her mother or her sister to help for a few weeks?

Good luck, I feel for you ...


:eek:

Meat,

I would recommend the 757 if seniority progression is your #1 goal. Everyone currently on the property is senior to you, and very few people bid from a higher paying seat to the lowest paying seat, so it is much more likely that people will move in on top of you if you bid a wide body plane than if you bid the 757. Rumor is that we will be having a system wide bid in the early spring. Lots of guys currently in the 757 looking to move to wide body pay.

Depends on mama to some extent. Is she fairly self-sufficient military wife?

I would not pass on getting on the seniority list asap. Go 757 MEM for fastest path to seniority. Enjoy the family time because it goes by faster than you think even though you're wiping their butts now. You'll make enough and the family is happier. In training if you need to take a pause due to "family events", they WILL work with you to adjust your training if needed. They want you done but they also want you to succeed.

The Oracle of PCB needs to jump as he used to commute from the panhandle before (if he didn't already give you gouge from previous Albie comm)

As others have said, the 757 is likely your fastest progression to a line on paper. That said, the company hasn't been putting many(any?) newhires into the airplane for awhile, preferring to send them to the 767 instead. If they don't hire much into the 75 in the near term, it's not gonna help your relative seniority. The 76 has more senior people transitioning out of the MD and Airbus every bid, in addition to the recent hires move from the 75 to the 76. In the end, the Airbus may turn out to be the quickest to a line for you as they're hiring into it and there aren't many senior FO's transitioning into it.

It would be nice if the company used the 76 for newhires as a last resort (same type rating, same instructors, until recently same sims), but it's a mishmash.

No way to know what the future holds.

Would avoid 777 as just not much flexibility in that system for someone with young kids. (Biggest $$'s though, so if there's a lot of familial support for CinCHaus could be more of a player. But 15 days gone is tough)

Would avoid the Bus, Bidpack is shrinking. One big spike in fuel prices and I could see us parking quite a few. Which can be great.

76 is growing, and WB pay. Haven't looked at the bidpacks, but think your relative Seniority would be similar 75 or 76. My expectation is more of the Senior FOs are already in a WB or laying over at home in the 75. Wouldn't expect many of them to transition to the 76, some will because it's an easy transition from the 75. Upgrade to the bigger bucks 777, yes. 75 Capt, yes.

Hope your parents chose your lucky numbers wisely.
Good Luck

Wow, tons of really solid information. I really appreciate the timely feedback. Based on my situation and the information provided it looks like 767 is probably the best of many good options. Again, thanks for the feedback. Cheers

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Here's what you need to do. Buy BidX. Get someone on property to sent you the .asc files for the bidpacks. Download and look at them yourself. Any FDX bubba who uses it can show you how to download bid awards for the last few months and see what guys fly. Look closely at the trips, and the trips junior guys can routinely hold. What makes once guy hold his nose might be attractive to you and vice versa...so I'd get some DATA vice opinions and make your own assessment.

3 kids in the house under 4 sucks....regardless of what you bid. I dont' mean its not a magic time full of love and happiness, but I don't think anyone looks back at those times and says "those were the highlight of my marriage". Kids get sick, puke, crap, and cry more when you are on a trip. I raised 3, but we spread 'em out a bit more. God bless you and the challenges you have, but its also a magic time.

I'll throw out two "outside the box" solutions.

1. Bid HKG. (I'm not kidding). Rent out your VPS house to military bro for 3 year assignment. Get a helper--live in or live out doesn't matter. Bid reserve. Mom gets an extra set of hands, you learn the 76 and fly to some cool places when the phone does ring. (Hint: It doesn't ring much here). Commute to VPS once or twice a month for an 8-9 day reserve period. Fly and blow stuff up. See what you did there? You just lived like you bid an international trip on the 777..but inverted it. :cool: Gone to other side of the world to work, home with fam the rest of the time. FedEx covers your (modest) house, oldest's preschool, and you spoil your wife 3 years. Bid back to MEM/VPS in 3 years before you start paying tuition for kids 2 or 3. One commute per month, less than 10 days. You and wife can have dates in the one of most fascinating cities in the world while helper entertains the kids.

2. Bid for big pay...777. Commute to MEM once a month (via BFM or TLH j/s) and go make money. Take % of those dollars and dedicate to in-house maid service or nanny support back in VPS.

Your issue isn't flying. Your issue is babies in the house. Get some support. Don't make your wife a single mom if you can avoid it.

Here's the gig: Rule 1: No matter what you bid, your wife is going to be overwhelmed at times. Make money, and get her some extra support. THAT is what is going to make her happy. You will make $1000 day year two on the 777. Would you rather stay at home and change diapers and forfeit that money, or would you rather pay someone $100 a day to do that and help and pocket the $900? By the way--even if you are home, you won't "do it right" anyway when you take care of the babies. Pay an expert, and do all you can to turn the baby momma back into your wife/girlfriend. She'll appreciate the support. Rule 2: You will have sex X numbers of time a month with your wife. Would you rather have X/30 or X/18? :D

If I sound like an ass here with that pragmatism, I'll offer than I've been married to a wife I adore for almost 28 years. I've raised 3 girls..one's a pilot, one is doing well in college, and one is tearing it up here in an international IB school. The key to a happy life is not how many butts you wipe or hours you spend in the kitchen, but but rather making sure your wife feels like you invest in her happiness. I've had this talk with my daughters--instead of spending tens of thousands of dollars on a weeding, how about you have a more modest event (that last a day) and invest in doing some things that will help you marriage down the road. A honeymoon trip is a waste as a newlywed--you'd be happy screwing in motel 6 at that point. After 3-4 years of struggling as you start off on your careers, however, and throwing in a baby or two a mom and dad getaway to Cozumel or Hawaii might be pretty valuable. A little domestic help also can reduce a lot of house tension. You are about to embark on a new career, and there's going to be a lot of stress no matter how wonderful a husband or lovely of a wife you each try to be. Get the tools in place now to reduce that tension.

(Dang...sorry if I went Dr Phil on you here. I've just met so many sad and miserable divorced pilots and I don't want anyone else to join that club...)

Another option which combines some of Albie's pros...

Move to MEM - the panhandle of Florida can be a tough commute. It's not our toughest, but it can get crowded. You have young kids and schooling is down the road. Come to MEM, bid reserve (I recommend the 76), and do both of the QOL things Albie recs above....be home more and use a little extra money to get some help for when you are gone. Spend a few years deciding where you really want to live and move once the kids get into school and you are more senior. If you are eventually leaving your existing support network down the road, you should consider this option.

I know it sounds crazy, but if you can find the right neighborhood for your family, your local schedule will beat a similar seat, similar seniority commuter's schedule 99% of the time.

We had 4 under 3 and I thought it was great. We must've been doing something wrong. Tough sometimes, but great.


There were times when we had no choice, with 30+ day TDYs and 330 days/year away from home. We never found anyone we could pay to be there who my wife would prefer over having her husband, the children's father, at home. You can't put a dollar figure on the value of having a dad at home. There's no spreadsheet bottom line that makes domestic help the better option.



You meant to say, "We've raised ...", right?






.

Golf clapping. No sarcasm. It has to be tough.

Caught me. Guilty. Anyone who knows me knows my girls got their looks and their manners from their momma (thankfully).:o

Did a lot TDY as well...but those days were over when I started my airline career. Desert Storm, Provide Comfort, OSW, ONW, etc. all took a toll, and my two oldest still remember those times.

While you cannot put a price on the value of dad being at home, the value of dad on the road at FDX is Hourly pay x about 6 hours + perdiem+B fund contribution. If I really, really wanted to be super dad I could have become a teacher and seen them every day at school, or perhaps home schooled them instead. But I didn't. I am an airline pilot.

I'm not here to belittle stay at home moms, or stay at home dads. What I will say is what they got for letting me chase my dreams was the chase to their own too. Flying lessons, cheerleading camps and events, cars, tuition....any parent can do the math. Life takes money. Making money takes time. Every parent tries to find the right balance. In my case as my kids have gotten older they have gotten to travel all over the globe with me. I was home for proms, major events, plays, recitals, and the standard refrigerator picture list of events...but they also knew that to live our lifestyle daddy has to be gone at times. They seem to have turned out just fine.

My point is I've seen guys who will spend 30k on a new boat who recoil at paying for a babysitter for a night out with mom or a little extra help during the week. Being a cheap--especially when it comes to your family--is a bad investment. Guys will change the oil on a car to keep it maintained, but if a marriage breaks its a lot more stressful than if a car quits running. That was my point. If guys think staying home more makes life better--do it. But unless you live in domicile, you are going to likely be away several nights each month. It still beats the military schedules. My point was simply use some of that hard earned cash to try to make momma's life easier, and everyone wins.

I'd have to agree with this. Very Valid Points regarding the 757/767 and A300.

To further that thought, the A300 might offer the best QOL for a few years but then you could find your self stagnating. Bottom line, you are junior as a new hire and it takes time to gain seniority. I know some guys think it is crazy, but after a year or two, the 757 might offer a better QOL. You could down bid into the 757; trade a little money for better QOL. I know a lot of guys who have done that and been glad they did it.

Has IND been going to new hires at all? Or is that a pretty senior base?