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Article about Couriers in USA

Comments

  • #2
    tulachmhor
    Closed Accounts Posts: 51 ✭✭tulachmhor


    Its not as if this type of thing hasnt been happening before now.
    In fact its so prevalent that its almost taken-for-granted.
    With the developments in electronic data transfer,there is still demand,albeit less frequently,for couriers,especially where the collection and delivery of non-data transferable goods is required.
    Although,in saying all that,it seems that messengering in todays world is largely a subsistence-based venture,with very few messengers themselves making enough grade to feasibly survive,save a few who are turning over at least some profit.
    As was mentioned in the article,the transient nature of the workforce and their ''inability'' to form unions,means that the companies who contract them are literally making money off their backs.


  • #3
    rottenhat
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,352 ✭✭✭rottenhat


    Couple of familiar names there - I worked for Mark Gross at Quick Messenger for a couple of years, and Andy Zalan's company Alpha Mail was very closely linked to DC Courier (and eventually sold to them) while I was there.

    There were a couple of efforts to unionise the messengers in DC, both times working with a reasonably progressive local of the Teamsters but neither got very far...we might have been better off working with the SEIU as they had more experience unionising apparently ununionisable groups like janitors and parking lot attendants, but the earlier efforts by the Teamsters had made it their purview. It's unlikely that the independent contractor status of messengers would have survived legal scrutiny but no-one really wanted to stick their head above the parapet and become a test case for recognition as an employee.


  • #4
    Harrybelafonte
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,450 ✭✭✭Harrybelafonte


    I think the relevance of unions is becoming more important these days. People like me who never belonged to a union and perhaps saw them as part of the "institution" and perhaps as more a hinderance to "progress" are beginning to see that they have an important place to play in protecting us. Might seem obvious but a lot of us were oblivious.

    Problem in general is that as you guys have mentioned it's difficult to organise and a larger organisation probably has no interest in the situation?


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