Sobering News on this Holiday.

[Just Dallas]

Removed

[cody]

Dallas, thats sad but I'm afraid it'll become more common, in the past a company used to realize that the people they employ create the reason for the company to exist, the guys on the top floor may fund and guide the operation but it's the ones that roll up there shirt sleeves and get the job done that keep the show running.  It's hard for an employee to take pride in a company that doesn't care if they exist but as the trend continues and the top shelf continues to distance themselves from the work crew the more we'll see this.  When the boss walked past the guy on the floor and knew his name and the names of his kids it was harder to throw them to the wolves, now a worker is just a number that nobody cares about or takes the time to realize they are people with real families, that buy real food, with real morgages and a need for real money.  I saw this trend coming over a year ago when the local paper gave advertising space to the weekly ad from the michigan works agency, its's an agency that holds seminars intended to assist people that are out of work to find work ot at least to qualify themselves for work if a job were to become available, the ad that time was a seminar for emplorers on how to close the doors of a business and what step would have to be taken to shut down.  Sometimes I think I may have lived too long.

[luvrbus]

That's sad Dallas when Bill Flint (Flintco) owned that Co they cared for the drivers and took great care to provide the best for the drivers even private jet flights for their family with health problems




good luck

[Just Dallas]

Removed

[Don Fairchild]

In deed this is sad news but I am afraid that there will be several more co.'s to do this.

I wish all the drivers well and hope all get home to be with there families.

Don

[Dreamscape]

What a sad day for them! I hope they all get home and are able to celebrate! Gee Whiz!

Paul

[Runcutter]

It's sad that "business ethics" has become an oxymoron.  Arrow was a news item on last night's TV news here in Dallas.

At this time of year especially, our first thought is the drivers.  I wonder about how they're (or if they're) going to collect their trucks, and what happens to the loads for consignees. 

I find it extraordinary to try to  believe management didn't see this coming (btw, I've been a manager in transit, then have owned my own business - for decades), and preserve enough cash to finish the jobs one last time. 

Of course, airlines have been doing this, too, since Frank Lorenzo and Eastern/Continental.  More recently, ATA.  ("Hey, here's a good idea, let's drop off the passengers in Hawaii, and park the planes - oh well").  I don't think the argument works here, that if they told the drivers they were shutting down, that drivers would abandon the rigs.  (That's one of the problems we have in contracting transit services, drivers won't stay on the job to the last day of a revenue contract if their employer is loosing the job to another contractor.  In this case, the truck drivers still had to get to their home terminals - and even though there might have been a few abandoned trucks, it wouldn't be the whole fleet.

I had my car in for service yesterday, and they had one of the political channels on TV.  There was an interview of a multimillionaire business owner, who did deals on a handshake.  When business went bad, he borrowed money so he could still support his charities, then paid it back when business picked back up.  One of his points is that too many companies just do what their lawyers tell them.  Apparently, the one time he almost got shafted was when that happened - the other party's lawyers welshed on a  deal.  He apparently won in court, when an email from the other company's lawyers included the words "look for the loopholes). 

There was another one, a mill owner in Massachusetts, that kept everyone on the payroll after the mill burnt down, until he could rebuild and reopen.  It's sad that these are actually newsworthy events, rather than the norm.

I'm fortunate.  Most of my business is handshakes, or even virtual handshakes over the phone.  Only been shafted once (ever wonder why so few people want to deal with New Orleans?).  I will say that stories like Arrow's help keep me focused on doing the right thing, and guiding my consulting clients in also doing the right thing.

Arthur     

[Len Silva]

Unfortunately Dallas, it it all too common across the board.  I spent my working life in the telephone business.  Couldn't have dreamed of a better industry to work in.  Today, I would not recommend it to any young person starting out.  They are now just like everyone else, can't see past the next quarter or the bottom line.

Towards the end of my career, anyone who was in engineering or operations, with a computer and systems knowledge, was given a special notification of a pending layoff.  A security guard would come to their desk and ask them to back away from the computer, then escort them to the boss's office.  They would then be escorted to to door and told that someone would clean out their desk and send them any personal affects.

This was because of a fear that we all had some secret programs that could destroy the company with one or two keystrokes.  I don't think anyone actually had that capability.

Len

[luvrbus]

When I was a young man I worked for Tennessee Gas and it was a tradition to stop work on the 23rd day of Dec till after Jan 1st with pay.
I carried the same tradition into my business for 27 years and a happy employee is a good employee and allowing time with family is one of the greatest gift you can give or have.  



good luck

[JohnEd]

Dallas,

I agree of course.  Only question is, am I more nauseated by that behavior or heart sick for the guys stranded and out of work at Christmas. No doubt there will also be hell to pay to get their final pay check.  So what caused this  tectonic shift in business ethics human responsibility?  We all know how it used to be and how good it was....so what happened.  That is a real question!  I think every one on this board has an opinion on that and I would be interested.....

John

[bryanhes]

I live just outside Tulsa and was at the United Engine Detroit dealer talking to the manager there the other day right after this had happened. Not only did they leave these guys stranded but there last paychecks I was told bounced. Unbelievable! They could have had the decency to have all the drivers to bring the trucks to the yard and tell them after they were at least home that they were shutting down to try and reorganize.

I do allot of work with Flintco (I handle commercial facilities for Pella) and they are great people to work with and take care of there employees. We also just did work on Mrs. Flints home as well.

Sad situation for the guys stuck on the road indeed. The owners should be ashamed of their uncaring and cowardness actions. You can bet they will be home with there families.

Bryan

[belfert]

A lot can be blamed on shareholders.  If a company were to amass enough cash to survive a lean year or two, the shareholders would want that cash used to enrich them instead.  On the same hand, the shareholders want a profit no matter what even if it means laying off lots of employees.  Companies used to be able to take little or no profit in order to keep loyal employees during tough times.

It sounds like Arrow Trucking had their loans called in so they may not have had any choice in shutting down.  I think the finance companies could have waited until after the holidays to do this and given Arrow time for an orderly shutdown.

[JohnEd]

Brian makes a very good and timely point.....we don't have all the facts AAAANNNNDDDD their actions may have been forced by circumstances.  Now that being said......if they weren't forced GRRRRRRR   Somebody get a rope!

No takers on how this all got turned around?  Eamon.

Observing a similar mass injustice many tears ago I said to my Mex Auto Repair Shop owner "I don't know how they can sleep at night".  He answered "Oh, they sleep very well John.....in very big and comfortable houses".  I didn't like that as a punishment.

John

[PCC]

I will say that stories like Arrow's help keep me focused on doing the right thing, and guiding my consulting clients in also doing the right thing.

Arthur     

Thank you for staying focused on doing the right thing. No material thing follows us past the grave, but our reputation lives long after we do. I believe that a reputation is very important, and value those with good ones.

Thank you, Arthur

Keith

[jackhartjr]

The drivers were finally told to take the truck to the nearest Freightliner dealership and there they would be met with a voucher or something similar that for $200.00 to get a bus ticket home.
I looked for Arrow trucks coming up from FL yesterday and today...they did not run a lot down here.  Would have gotten them home!  Pretty much EVERY driver out here was looking for Arrow trucks.
My brother was in PA when the fuel cards were shut off with the guys at the pumps left wondering what happened!
One thing about it...the little bits of human excretement that allowed it to get to that point will answer for it!

Raincutter, the company you talked about in Mass that kept the employees on after the mill burned made Polertech material!  I am reminded of that whenever I purchase something made of it!