8Lpearlchannel

I shipped a bunch of stuff TO HAWAII from a FedEx Kinko's office in downtown Minneapolis using one of their standard boxes for $13 (2-day air) two years ago around Christmas. As the clerk was ringing me up he mentioned to me how great of a discount airline employees receive.

A half hour later that same day my cousin asks me to ship his stuff to Montana for him. When he shows up and I try to use my discount, the supervisor tells me: "We don't do airline discounts two weeks prior to Christmas. Everybody knows that." REALLY? Just a half hour ago one of your employees was able to apply that discount and accepted my package and now all of a sudden you can't do it.

I was baffled. The next day I jumpseated to Montana with gifts in hand to deliver to relatives myself. I haven't tried to ship anything via FedEx since.

Jughead

Maybe some of you FedEx guys or frequent shippers can help me out here.

I went to FedEx Kinkos today to ship a shirt from ATL to lower Alabama. The shirt was in a non-FedEx padded envelope. The employee told me it would be much cheaper to put it in the standard FedEx envelope, since it was the uniform size and no measuring would be required (which apparantely makes the price go up). Once in the FedEx envelope, we discovered the price didn't change.

The package weighed 0.7 lbs. The price came to 13.80, after the 75% discount. So using my best Auburn math, this comes out to $55.20 for this normally? Really? For a 0.7 lb envelope? Maybe I'm living in the past, but this price seems outrageous to me.

I appreciate the discount, but paid $5.07 instead at the post office for priority mail, which gets there a day later than FedEx would have.

Just wondering if something was wrong here, or does this seem like the normal shipping price?

meeko031

Does this include a non fedex kinko site? IE: a shipping center that displays "fedex authorized dealer" on the window, or maybe I could just actually walk in the store and ask the clerk.

Thanks

minimwage4

Yes really. That's what happens when you pretty much have a monopoly over the express shipping market.

The Fedex discount is nice but it makes an expensive bill just a little less expensive. Go usps.

Jughead

Thanks - I did, and will from now on. I complain about the USPS, but for 1/10th the cost for basically the same service, I'll change my tune.

prezbear

[QUOTE=Jughead;925269]Maybe some of you FedEx guys or frequent shippers can help me out here.

The package weighed 0.7 lbs. The price came to 13.80, after the 75% discount. So using my best Auburn math, this comes out to $55.20 for this normally? Really? For a 0.7 lb envelope? Maybe I'm living in the past, but this price seems outrageous to me.

I appreciate the discount, but paid $5.07 instead at the post office for priority mail, which gets there a day later than FedEx would have./QUOTE]

Jughead, that priority mail you shipped via USPS was most likely carried on FedEx, as the Post Office doesn't own any aircraft. Also, do you realize that it costs .44 cents for a first class stamp and they subsidize the money losing package delivery with their monopoly on mail? Furthermore, contrary to minimum4's comments, besides FedEx and the USPS you also have a choice of using UPS.

Regarding the "cheapness" of the Post Office:

"USPS is trying to curb steep losses. It posted a $3.8 billion loss in its 2009 fiscal year, the latest in a multiyear string of whopping losses.

The cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service announced Tuesday that it will incur about $238 billion in losses in the next 10 years if Congress doesn't permit it to revamp its outdated business model."

CNNMoney.com March 2, 2010. Reporter, Annalyn Censky

prezbear

Jughead,

I had a big response to you that got lost when I was timed out, the gist of which I'll summarize:

ATL to MSP on Delta today. Anywhere from $342 to $924. Why the differential in prices? Yield management. I get it. When it's all said and done Delta will make about 4% net profit margin. (based on Q3 results google finance)

Eat at McDonald's? $7 value meal? Good deal? McDonald's net profit margin is 22%.

Interested in an iPad? They start at $499. Apples's net profit margin? 21%. Using Delta's 4% margin you'd be able to get that same iPad for about $410.

You shipped a $15 T-shirt overnight from ATL to MSP. You walked in and paid retail for a premium service that is guaranteed, insured and trackable. You also got a 75% discount. So, instead of paying $55, you're now spending $13.75 to ship that shirt. About 92% of the price of the shirt. Not very efficient, therefore not a good value. Does it have to be there overnight? I'm not sure if you can choose 2 to 3 day service using the interline discount. If you can, why not?

The answer to your question is Yes! You are living in the past. FedEx has over 252,000 employees worldwide. Operates over 650 aircraft. FedEx Ground alone has over 60,000 vehicles and 492 service centers. It's an incredibly labor and capital intensive business. Much more so than passenger airlines. With the exception of mail delivery, which USPS has an outright monopoly(minimum4 That's right USPS has the monopoly here), FedEx and UPS both have logistics capabilities that the money losing Post Office can only dream of.

By the way, that T-shirt was still carried on a FedEx aircraft from ATL to MSP. The $5.75 the Post Office charged you was really a money loser.
This is from Annalyn Censky, CNNMoney.com,March 2, 2010:

"The cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service announced Tuesday that it will incur about $238 billion in losses in the next 10 years if Congress doesn't permit it to revamp its outdated business model.

USPS is trying to curb steep losses. It posted a $3.8 billion loss in its 2009 fiscal year, the latest in a multiyear string of whopping losses. Mail volume was down 12.7% for the year, a trend the agency expects to continue over the next decade as more consumers opt for online bill payments and message delivery.

The Post Office was $10 billion in debt as of Sept. 30 -- not far off from its $15 billion debt limit, which the agency expects to hit in its 2011 fiscal year."

So, saying you'll ship everything via the Post Office from now on is like someone saying they'll wait for Delta or AirTran to start a price war in Atlanta offering money losing fares before they'll travel. Sure, everyone likes that price, but it's not sustainable. Of course, neither Delta or AirTran are government owned so they won't be able to sustain continual losses. Why is the Post Office allowed such an awful business model?

The bottom line is I'll always ship via FedEx if I can because I'm a shareholder and employee. My next choice is going to be UPS. There are times when it makes sense to ship via USPS. I won't dispute that one bit. I just don't like rewarding their ineptitude, personally.

In case you were wondering, Yes. I have too much time on my hands. Been injured reserve the past couple of months due to a back injury. God, I need a life...

prezbear

8L,

Below I've summarized an FCIF (Flight Crew Information File) from the FedEx Chief Pilot:

As employees of FedEx Express we enjoy the benefit of reduced rate shipping
as part of the company’s reduced rate shipping program. This program is
available to us either by establishment of a personal shipping account or
by presentation of our company ID cards at FedEx Service Centers worldwide.

Reduced rate shipping is one of the most valued and utilized benefits
available to FedEx employees. However, there are rules and limitations that
we may have forgotten since our initial introduction in Basic Indoc.
This FCIF is intended to inform flight operations employees: (1) that these
rules exist and where they can be referenced in company publications; (2)
what some of the major limitations are; and (3) that we are subject to
discipline, up to and including termination, for intentional and/or serious
violations of those limitations.

Here is a list of the most basic limitations and abuse guidelines of the
Company's Employee Reduced-rate Shipping Privilege (see the PBB and PM for
more detailed information):

1. Eligible persons are limited to the employee, spouse and dependent
children. Other family members, friends, acquaintances and business
associates are not eligible to use your Employee Reduced-rate Shipping
privilege.

2. There are restrictions on picking up and dropping off packages
based on eligibility, payment and season.

3. Do not use your discount for business (profit or nonprofit) or any
commercial enterprise (such as shipment of items you have sold on eBay or
other internet sites), or for activities for which you or your family are
reimbursed.

4. Do not give your account number to someone other than your spouse
or dependent children. Don't even give it to another employee.

5. Do not use another employee's, family member's or friend's credit
card number to establish an employee account number.

6. Excessive use of the Employee Reduced-rate Shipping privilege is
prohibited.

Based on rules 1 and 2, you're violating FedEx interline shipping policy. Maybe the FedEx employee was being polite and using another rule to deny you.

Were you in the right?

Jughead

No, wasn't wondering, and I appreciate your response.

I'll ship USPS as long as it's 1/10th of FedEx's exhorbitant price. I'm no better than the pax wandering onto my airplane with their WalMart bag luggage with a lip full of Copenhagen. What do they want? A cheap ticket. Period. Dot. Bottom line.

I subsidize the USPS's inefficient, outdated, crappy business model with my tax dollars, so why take a double hit by shipping with brown or purple?
I freakin' hate the post office. It's an example of everything that's wrong with the government. Give them more money, and they'll find a way to **** that away post haste.

Sorry I'm living in the past, but $55 to ship a letter from Marietta, GA to Ozark, AL is outrageous. I could literally drive it there myself cheaper.

Thanks - hope you get better soon.

Stratosphere

I will back that up and say I have seen an employee fired for that..His wife was using his employee discount and running her own business shipping stuff on E bay using his discount and he paid the price for it. Funny question that I have on it is that OAL employees get the same discount FX employees do as far as shipping. So my question is if an OAL employee has a business using the same scenario what is his punishment? Possibly loss of shipment privileges if caught. Might be he/she would never be caught. But employees with shipping accounts are MONITORED! Thankfully I don't ship anyway so I don't need the benefit.