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Companies That Don't Deserve Our Trust

(Also see update at the end.)

At Christmas time, I wrote that I would love to get the new iMac as a gift from readers. Lots of you contributed but not enough to buy one. A few weeks ago, a very generous TalkLeft reader bought one for me. I've been patiently waiting for it to arrive. Today was the day, according to Apple and Fedex, it should have arrived at my office.

I was so excited. But it never came. Around 3 pm, I checked the Fedex tracking system. And there it was: Lie Number 1. Fedex falsely said they tried to deliver it and no one was available to accept it. [More...]

When I called my office, they told me the Fedex guy had made his delivery for the day around that time, but while he left packages for others, he had no package for me.

Have you ever tried to get a fedex representative on the phone? Not so easy. Finally, I navigated past the automated voice prompts that kept telling me a delivery had been attempted but no one was there to accept it, to a customer service representative.

She told me Fedex has no way of contacting its drivers until after they return to the terminal. Really? What about those hand-held devices the drivers are always typing into when we see them on elevators? She said that's Fedex Air, not Fedex Ground. Fedex Ground drivers can't be contacted.

I asked her to call the terminal and have them contact the driver. She said she couldn't do that, and refused to give me the number. Terminal numbers are apparently secret. She said she'd file a report. I asked to speak to a supervisor. After leaving me on hold for several minutes while she went to get a supervisor, she came back to tell me he stepped out. I asked for him to call me. He never called. I then went online and "chatted" with a Fedex representative. She also said Fedex has no way of contacting Fedex Ground drivers and said I should give them some time to address the complaint.

But, while Fedex couldn't get hold of its driver, the receptionist at my office was able to call him. And here comes Lie Number Two: He told the receptionist there was no suite number on the shipping label so he didn't know who to deliver the package to. Really? Here's the shipping label Apple sent them: The suite number is right on it:

Realizing a order confirmation might not be the same as the Fedex shipping form, I then called Apple (and had no trouble getting a live person named Quinn who was exceptionally nice) to confirm the suite number was on the shipping form Apple sent to Fedex. He said it was.

Considering the snow storm we had yesterday, if Fedex had just said the weather caused a delay, I would have understood. But to flat out make two misrepresentations, and then say they have no way to contact the driver to rectify the error is inexcusable.

So it will be at least one more day until I get my new iMac. I'll live, but that's not the point. The point is that since Fedex is practically a monopoly, there's no way for consumers to hold it accountable for actions like these -- other than publicize it, which is what I'm doing.

I don't like companies that aren't truthful with its customers, give you the runaround, and don't own up to mistakes. It will be a long time before I trust Fedex again enough to use its services.

Update 2/26: Fedex delivered my iMac at 8:30 this morning. The suite number was clearly on the fedex label, as you can see here. It was also clearly on the packing list from Apple. There are never less than 5 people manning the front desk and mailroom in my office, and there is no door that would be closed as if no one was there -- the elevator opens right into the suite. Since the fedex delivery guy delivered packages for others yesterday, clearly someone was there when he arrived. And the later excuse that the label didn't have the suite number so he didn't know where to deliver it was, as you can see from the label, just not true.

With this behind me, I am now going to open and set-up my iMac. Thanks to all for your comments, and once again, to the very generous TalkLeft reader who bought me the iMac.

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  • Display: Sort:
    But, but Fed Ex is a big reason why we (5.00 / 4) (#1)
    by caseyOR on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 07:59:16 PM EST
    no longer need the U.S. Postal Service. Fed Ex makes the Post Office unnecessary and a waste of money. Didn't you get the memo?

    Seriously, if you think Fed Ex is bad now, and it is, just wait until the Post Office is killed off.

    It wasn't Fedex (2.00 / 2) (#53)
    by thadjock on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:11:24 PM EST
    but the internet that dealt the fatal blow to the post office.  Fedex invented their own product and created a new market, one that the USPS only stepped into 20 yrs too late. The USPS's product got converted to digital files, delivered in nanosecond speed around the world, without a stamp.

    They do some things very well, though as it turns out, at a price that is unsustainably cheap. Coupled with their pension and healthcare burden, the prognosis is grave.  The USPS will survive, but significantly restructured. They're a lumbering dinosaur that wasn't nimble enough to adapt when the earth changed.

    Parent

    Exactly, Casey (none / 0) (#12)
    by Zorba on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:28:14 PM EST
    If the Post Office is eliminated, Fed Ex will only get worse.
    Having said that, I will say that UPS seems to be much better than Fed Ex.  I don't know what Fed Ex's problems are, but I avoid them like the plague.

    Parent
    In my experience, also, UPS is better (5.00 / 2) (#17)
    by caseyOR on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 10:02:43 PM EST
    than Fed Ex. Of course, UPS workers are union members. It is my understanding that Fed Ex's U.S. workers are not represented by a union.

    Maybe that has something to do with why UPS is the better company with which to deal.

    Parent

    As I understand it (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by Rupe on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 10:59:23 PM EST
    FedEx drivers are more or less independent carriers, like a franchise almost.  One of my former delivery drivers is working his way from the warehouse to a driver at UPS.  From all reports, it seems like a pretty great place to work, union with good benefits.  This stuff matters.

    Parent
    There are zillions (1.00 / 1) (#34)
    by Abdul Abulbul Amir on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:24:15 AM EST
    .

    There are zillions of people at UPS working there way from part time warehouse work to full time driver. The vast majority never make it. It is a bit of a bait and switch job.

    .

    Parent

    True... (none / 0) (#33)
    by kdog on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:02:58 AM EST
    Some, if not all, Fed-Ex routes are independently owned and operated...my uncle recently sold his Fed-Ex route so he can look into buying a bread or juice route instead.  He said the corporate demands and headaches just became too much too stomach at Fed-Ex.

    Parent
    I own a mail order business (none / 0) (#54)
    by esmense on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:13:52 PM EST
    We use USPS and UPS. But I have heard so many complaints my own experience, as a consumer, has been similar -- and I've heard many similar complaints from others.

    Fedex is fine for business communications between large population centers, but, if you need to ship product nationally, with a high volume of customers outside the big population corridors, it is useless. In fact, in many small towns and rural communities, like the many that my business serves, Fedex shipments are actually processed and delivered by the Post Office. Their strength is their air fleet -- their "free agent" concept is simply not workable, in terms of being profitable for their drivers, outside of heavy population centers. But, even within the context of cities, the free agent model does not provide service to the consumer equal to that of USPS or UPS -- because profit margins are so thin for ground service, Fedex drivers are much less motivated to make deliveries under adverse conditions. They are more likely to put off deliveries until they have a large enough truck load, or to wait out less than optimal conditions that can raise operational costs,etc. 4 years ago Seattle experienced a snow storm that paralyzed the city for close to 2 weeks. i had just finished chemo and was weak and worried about falling in the snow. As soon as the snow started I placed an order with a local outdoor equipment company for a product that attached to your boots to give you more traction in the snow and ice. The order was filled immediately, but, the delivery service they used was Fedex -- despite the fact that both the Post Office and UPS worked mightily to provide daily pick ups and deliveries during that entire, stressful time, orders like mine sat in the Fedex trucks until after the snow melted.  

    UPS also uses the Post Office for rural delivery, but they have much broader ground coverage than Fedex, and a unionized workforce that won't see its compensation pinched by providing decent service. The Fedex profit model just isn't workable as a genuinely national system.

    Parent

    Pleasures of the Post Office (none / 0) (#38)
    by Philly on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 10:15:48 AM EST

    If the Post Office is eliminated, Fed Ex will only get worse. Having said that, I will say that UPS seems to be much better than Fed Ex.  I don't know what Fed Ex's problems are, but I avoid them like the plague.

    I've had better experiences with UPS, too.

    But as frustrating as FedEx can be, in my experiences, the Post Office is just as bad or worse in many ways, and with even less transparency.  I have had many letters and packages I shipped through US Postal Service simply never arrive, and during my wife's immigration process perhaps 10% of the notices the government mailed to us never arrived.


    Parent

    You took the words (none / 0) (#16)
    by sj on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:54:58 PM EST
    right out of my hands.  And said it better.

    Parent
    Didn't they offer (5.00 / 1) (#2)
    by Peter G on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:05:27 PM EST
    to have you drive out to the airport area -- or wherever their terminal is -- and pick it up yourself, after 5 pm?  That's what I was offered the last time this happened to me.

    no they didn't (none / 0) (#5)
    by Jeralyn on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:22:24 PM EST
    Because I really needed the delivery (none / 0) (#15)
    by Peter G on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:38:03 PM EST
    I actually took an hour and a half and did that.  Believe me, there was a fair cross-section of the Philadelphia population there at the same time, coming in at a fairly steady clip, all with the same story.  I did get my package that way.

    Parent
    Jeralyn, I can commiserate (5.00 / 1) (#10)
    by shoephone on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:19:57 PM EST
    My sister overnighted a present to me from LA ( I had told her not to do that, since it was the week before Xmas and I  would gladly wait, but there's no reasoning with my sis when she's excited to give someone a gift...) The package was picked up from her office at 9:35 am on Thursday and by 6 pm Friday it had not arrived. I tracked the package online and the website said the package was sitting in the FedEx facility 20 minutes up the road from my house. So...I figured it would either be here that evening or the next morning. Nope.

    I finally tracked down a rep in Pennsylvania(!) and she said her computer had a note that the package couldn't be delivered because of weather conditions and impassable, flooded roads. That was a blatant lie. I live 20 minutes from the facility and we were not having heavy rain, floods, or any other weather issues.

    The nearby facility refused to answer the phone Friday night, all day Saturday, all day Sunday. By Monday I had left many messages. Finally got a call back Monday evening from a rep in Texas. (I guess all the phones in WA State are broken.) After over an hour of ridiculousness with her, my package was delivered at 9 pm by an independent contract driver. The driver, a very congenial guy, got a nice tip and a dark chocolate bar from me. FedEx, on the other hand, will never get my business again.  

    I'm sure some of you remember (5.00 / 1) (#24)
    by NYShooter on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 12:09:34 AM EST
    the old "I love Lucy" skit where she got a job on an assembly line that made some kind of candy, or pastry. Everything was going along fine until they started speeding up the conveyor belt, and when she couldn't stuff them into the boxes fast enough she started stuffing them into her mouth.
    It was comedy, and it was funny.

    Well, the kind of pressure Fed Ex drivers are under isn't comedy, and it's not funny at all. MSNBC has shown a one hour special featuring Fed Ex, and their operation. If ever there was a nightmare scenerio about what happens when today's state of the art, high speed technology teams up with flesh and blood humans, this was it. The down to the second demands made on the drivers was simply, IMO, inhuman. Make one wrong turn on a block, and suddenly, you're 3 stops behind schedule.

    I'm certainly not making excuses for the corporation, there is no end to the greed, and avarice, their management displays in its never-ending drive for ever-increasing profits. They know there are 25 applicants ready to grab your job if you can't keep up. And, what better way to cull their ranks of older, and somewhat slower workers than ever increasing demands?

    Mailmen have been known to bring mail to their own homes when they're not feeling well and "storing it" in their basements. It's no surprise that Fed Ex drivers make lame excuses for not being able to keep up either.


    Jeralyn, (5.00 / 1) (#25)
    by DebFrmHell on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 12:36:23 AM EST
    Just wanted to drop a little note and tell you I am thrilled you are getting your iMac!

    I have to say (5.00 / 2) (#43)
    by kmblue on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 11:46:17 AM EST
    there are dozens of companies that drive me crazy.
    When I call my health care program, it takes me 20 minutes to make a simple appt.  While I wait, an automated voice tells me it's SO much more efficient to make appointments online. Okay, I'll do it online.  Return emails 3 days later tell me I'll have to call!  
    All automated phone systems make me crazy.  Mashing "0" over and over doesn't seem to work anymore.  Okay, I'm from the Stone Age, I admit it.

    And I think of all the operators who lost their jobs, too.  

    Don't suggest changing my health care provider.  They're the only ones who'll cover me because of pre-existing conditions, and they charge me a staggering premium to do it.

    To bypass keypunch HE!! & get a human (5.00 / 2) (#44)
    by NYShooter on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 12:38:30 PM EST
    You are a mensch (none / 0) (#45)
    by shoephone on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 12:47:19 PM EST
    I just bookmarked this.

    Parent
    My mini iPad earlier than promised. (none / 0) (#3)
    by oculus on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:07:59 PM EST


    Apple was great (none / 0) (#6)
    by Jeralyn on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:23:56 PM EST
    when the order was placed Feb. 8, they said they expected it would arrive the first week in March. So they are ahead of their production estimates.

    Parent
    I did have trouble re a rug shipped (none / 0) (#7)
    by oculus on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:34:31 PM EST
    from New Delhi. There was a COD attached for $100+ and Fed Ex driver kept returning but I wouldn't pay. He finally gave me a phone no. to call.  Next day I got the rug w/out the COD.

    Parent
    Who was it? (none / 0) (#66)
    by gaf on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 05:39:48 AM EST
    He finally gave me a phone no. to call.  Next day I got the rug w/out the COD.

    Don't keep us in suspense - whose number was it?

    • Someone high up in the govt?
    • Mafia?
    • Opus Dei?
    • Knights Templar?
    • The Rug Syndicate?
    • The COD Syndicate?


    Parent
    A secret. If I told you, I'd have to..... (none / 0) (#70)
    by oculus on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 02:28:12 PM EST
    I had the same problem with a delivery (none / 0) (#4)
    by Anne on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:21:34 PM EST
    of items I ordered from Amazon for Christmas - "delivery attempted, no one home" when I was, in fact, home all day.

    It made me wonder if these guys have quotas to meet and "delivery failure" is one of the few acceptable reasons for not getting all the packages on the trucks delivered.

    Sadly for you, Jeralyn, it doesn't appear that all the follow-up you did resulted in anything near a satisfactory resolution of the situation - it's like "we're going to do whatever we can to avoid taking responsibility, and if you try to hold us accountable, we're just going to stonewall you until you give up and go away."

    Really great business plan, huh?

    Who needs a business plan ... (5.00 / 1) (#51)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:08:52 PM EST
    ... when you're angling for a monopoly? Fedex's corporate pass-the-buck routine reminds me of a parody Ma Bell commercial Lily Tomlin did on SNL years ago, in character as Ernestine the telephone operator: "We don't care. We don't have to. We're the phone company."

    Parent
    Lily Tomlin did (none / 0) (#65)
    by sj on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 12:22:42 AM EST
    Ernestine on Laugh-in.  Also Edith Ann.

    Parent
    My favorite: Bobby-Jeanine, (none / 0) (#71)
    by oculus on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 02:30:35 PM EST
    the cocktail lounge organist.

    Parent
    I just re-read your comment (none / 0) (#72)
    by sj on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 05:39:48 PM EST
    and apparently she did Ernestine on Season 2 SNL.  I'll have to see if I can find it.

    Parent
    Anne, same here (none / 0) (#31)
    by smott on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 08:57:39 AM EST
    I was home all day - however this happened to be a shipment I wanted to Refuse (don't ask). I checked with the merchant and they said I'd just have to sign the Refusal, and FedEx would ring the bell.
    Well, they didn't, and left the package, so I had to haul it to a FedEx office next day to Refuse it again.

    Then - next day - it's BACK on my porch!!

    FedEx apologized and said it was their mistake. It happened to be persihable, packed in ice, so it was imperitive to get it back to the merchant ASAP.  FedEx said theyd come get it the following week....so it sat on my porch for like 4 days.

    Incredible.

    Parent

    This is standard operating procedure for Fedex (none / 0) (#8)
    by vml68 on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 08:47:14 PM EST
    I have had it happen a few times. First they claim you were not at home,even though you've been there all day. Then they don't have a way to contact their driver which I find impossible to believe.

    The last time it happened, I threw such a fit after they gave me the "you were not at home" line, that they miraculously found a way to contact the driver. He claimed he could not deliver because my apt no. was not on the label. So, I would have to wait till the next day. This was a package from the lady I've been buying my grass-fed meats from for the past four years. She had never made a mistake before but since everyone makes a mistake sometimes, I called her to check. She said my apt no. was on the label. So I called Fedex and threw another fit. Half an hour later, the driver was at my door with the package and sure enough the apt no. was on it.

    Has never happened with UPS.

    USPS still works best for me (5.00 / 3) (#11)
    by shoephone on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:25:08 PM EST
    Not only do they deliver the package by the time they promise (sometimes a day or two earlier), but they do it for a very decent price. Only thing is I have to go to the post office to send it, but that's not a big deal for me.

    I wouldn't send a computer through the post office, but for most things, the private companies really ding you and lie about why the package wasn't delivered on time.

    Parent

    I have never had (none / 0) (#14)
    by MKS on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:30:54 PM EST
    a letter or package lost by the U.S. Postal Service....

    And they are a much better deal than FedEx or UPS.

    Parent

    I feel your pain... (none / 0) (#9)
    by kdog on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 09:01:51 PM EST
    I've been trying to track down a missing skid of water heaters for a week...not Fed-Ex this time but I've banged heads with them all.

    It's unfortunate but it all comes down to who is paying who...you would really have to get on Apple's case to accomplish anything if, heaven forbid, it's not delivered tomorrow.  You're Apple's customer, Apple is Fed-Ex's customer.

    I know the customers at my yob don't want to hear no bull from Fed-Ex or UPS or YRC or ABF or pick your shipping acronym...if we wanna get paid we better get our stuff delivered.  When I can't get nowhere with the shippers I have to get the guy who gets taken to the ballgame with the shipping co sales rep on the horn...the guy at Apple who chose Fed-Ex over UPS.

    Am I the only one (none / 0) (#18)
    by CoralGables on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 10:12:54 PM EST
    that has never had a problem with FedEx or UPS?

    I guess so. (5.00 / 1) (#20)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 11:06:49 PM EST
    I don't have a complaint about UPS or FedEx, other than they're both pretty expensive, given the service they provide. For my money, the U.S. Postal Service is still the best and most reliable service going, and it's much cheaper.

    Parent
    As I rarely ship anything (none / 0) (#21)
    by CoralGables on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 11:16:30 PM EST
    I don't ship with them, but prefer any packages being delivered to be shipped by one of them. Their tracking is far superior to USPS.

    Parent
    USPS IMO (5.00 / 1) (#32)
    by smott on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 08:59:12 AM EST
    HAs been fastest, cheapest, and most accurate in terms of tracking info.

    Can't wait til we kill it.

    Parent

    I've never had a problem ... (none / 0) (#52)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:10:40 PM EST
    ... tracking parcels with the U.S. Postal Service, and I've never had a late delivery.

    Parent
    So.... (none / 0) (#59)
    by smott on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 04:25:28 PM EST
    KILL IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Parent
    Had Same Experience with UPS (none / 0) (#22)
    by lawstudent on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 11:17:58 PM EST
    Over the holidays, I had the same experience with UPS -- literally identical.  Started with delivery exceptions, claiming I wasn't home.  When I called to follow up, I was told the delivery exception was due to no apartment number listed on the package.  Also false.  Eventually, I got through to a supervisor who told me the package would be delivered "tomorrow."  Miraculously, it was, in fact, delivered the next day, and so I moved on.  But the experience was beyond ridiculous.  

    Apple offered me the option (none / 0) (#23)
    by bmaz on Mon Feb 25, 2013 at 11:23:06 PM EST
    of shipping via UPS on everything I ordered. They are a lot better than FedEx.  Last was over a year ago though, not sure if they still do that.

    A First World Problem (none / 0) (#26)
    by thadjock on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 01:55:26 AM EST
    Like this is a bitch, but usually after I get done venting with a little primal scream therapy in the car, or shower, or underwater chewing up some extra laps in the pool, somewhere in between visions of ripping the drivers face off, and using his uniform to infect a fedex server with a stuxnet worm, I stop to consider:

    Fedex Ground doesn't guarantee a delivery date, the Apple shipping invoice quotes delivery on the 26th, and it's possible the driver just missed it on his truck until he was too far away to make it back to your office before it was closed, and the easiest flag on his software drop-down was "customer not at home"--no harm no foul, no action required of you, he'll just bring it tomorrow, and he'll still have it there by Apple's date.  

    Then I feel grateful it wasn't the box of payroll checks I (my employees) need tomorrow, or the bid package that I shipped too close to the deadline.

    Best of luck, & above all, don't stress.


    LOL, I agree it is a first world problem. (none / 0) (#29)
    by vml68 on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 07:21:34 AM EST
    after I get done venting with a little primal scream therapy in the car, or shower, or underwater chewing up some extra laps in the pool, somewhere in between visions of ripping the drivers face off, and using his uniform to infect a fedex server with a stuxnet worm

    I usually don't complain if my packages arrive a day or two late. The only time I am particular about it, is when it is a perishable item.

    Parent

    Agreed; God help the shipper (none / 0) (#40)
    by thadjock on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 11:25:11 AM EST
    who gets between me and my wagyu steaks

    Parent
    It (none / 0) (#27)
    by lentinel on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:18:07 AM EST
    is almost a hallucinatory condition that is invoked in me when I am told that I am not where I am or I have not been where I was.

    I'm glad to hear that you are going to be getting your new iMac.

    Best wishes and best of luck!

    Tip i've learned (none / 0) (#28)
    by vicndabx on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:51:22 AM EST
    Put as much address as possible on line 1 of whatever form you complete. E.g. Apt #, Suite, etc.

    Same thing has happened to me with both UPS and the USPS.

    Another company that I get annoyed with is (none / 0) (#30)
    by vml68 on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 07:29:32 AM EST
    Lasership. Amazon uses them to ship. If you look up your tracking number it will say items delivered, 2-5 days before they actually deliver your item!  

    Hmmm... (none / 0) (#35)
    by jbindc on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:27:37 AM EST
    While I am happy that Jeralyn is getting her new iMac, shouldn't we not trust companies like Apple, who have a documented history of labor and human rights abuses?

    Yes jb Apple does have an (none / 0) (#41)
    by fishcamp on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 11:29:02 AM EST
    appalling record of labor and human right abuses but in this case I think the problem is with Fed-ex and probably the snowstorm in Denver.

    Parent
    Your assertion that Apple (none / 0) (#68)
    by thadjock on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 10:07:44 AM EST
    has "an appalling record of labor and human rights abuses" is a radical misstatement of fact.

    An offshore contractor Apple (along with other silicon valley Companies) uses for manufacture of it's product was investigated for questionable labor practices. Many of the allegations proved to be unsubstantiated, and where improvements were needed Apple supported the investigation and worked together on necessary reforms.

    Apple has a long standing record of being one of the most progressive Corporations in the world regarding workplace fairness, and has consistently been an innovater adopting Corporate (and political) policies supporting gays, women, minorities, and even the environment.  

    I realise the great anonymous realm of the internet encourages carelessness with words, but the gross mischaracterisation of a Company or Person should never be the result.

    Parent

    OK (5.00 / 1) (#69)
    by ScottW714 on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 01:55:55 PM EST
    After I stopped laughing...

    When you say many of the allegation are not substantiated, then you are admitting some are valid.  I'll save you the trouble, Google "Apple Admits Labor Practices".  That's only the issues Apple is admitting to.

    The rest is fluff, who cares where they stand on LGBT issues if they are exploiting kids and exposing their workers to deadly toxins at ridiculously low wages ? That does not a progressive make.

    A better and more workable angle IMO is to note that pretty much every electronic devise in the US market has been made in the same factories with the same kinds of labor abuses, certainly all phones.  Apple is not above it no matter how much you want them to be.

    And to comment to JB, boycotting all companies with foreign labor issues would leave us naked, without technology, and without most of the 10 zillion products derived from oil.  It sucks, but certainly Apple is no worse or better than their competitors, but in the global economy, you can't function without using products derived from very bad treatment and exploitation of human beings.

    Parent

    Jeralyn what actually happened (none / 0) (#36)
    by fishcamp on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:50:58 AM EST
    is the person that ordered the iMac for you received the notice to pre-sign for the delivery if you were not there.  You too should have received one of those notices that you print, sign, and leave on your office door.  All Apple deliveries require somebody to sign.  You can then designate another office nearby or any other place for the product to be delivered.  They may not have been lying however I believe everybody lies.

    no they never brought the package (none / 0) (#61)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 07:28:32 PM EST
    or tried to deliver it. The office is never un-manned and the fedex guy delivered other packages, just not one for me.

    Parent
    Also down here (none / 0) (#37)
    by fishcamp on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 09:58:42 AM EST
    I made a point of going to both the Fed-ex and UPS offices when I first moved here and got their local telephone numbers for just the reason you are going through.  You can't get those numbers easily and with UPS I had to ship something to finally get the local number.  You are the one that taught me sleuthing.  Hopefully your new iMac will arrive today and somebody will be there to receive it.

    Similar experience (none / 0) (#39)
    by athyrio on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 10:38:27 AM EST
    Had a very similar experience recently with them over a mail order pkg of meds I was waiting for...I am home all the time in a wheel chair and my dogs bark like hell when anyone comes in the yard...they didn't that day...but their note in the maibox which is down by the highway said tried to deliver but no one home...Shame on them...apparently this is a habit for them...or lazy employees...

    We had fish from Alaska shipped to us (none / 0) (#42)
    by Angel on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 11:34:38 AM EST
    and they left one box on the delivery truck, it was early September - in Texas, so you know it was hot; they tried to deliver it the next day but we told them we were not interested in thawed fish, and we would be filing a claim for a refund of the fish they didn't deliver in frozen condition as well as the associated delivery fee.  Freakin' unbelievable.  

    well c'mon Jeralyn... (none / 0) (#46)
    by fishcamp on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 12:49:39 PM EST
    did the iMac arrive yet?  Don't keep us in suspense since it's 11:47 in Denver they must have delivered it by now.  Certainly glad I'm not there for your snowstorm :-)

    The Horror... (none / 0) (#47)
    by ScottW714 on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 01:47:58 PM EST
    ...of getting what you ordered a day later than expected during a blizzard...

    Fed-Ex is the standard, and as I am sure you are aware is the King of overnight delivery of documents.

    UPS has tied itself to USPS so that about half their deliveries are actually delivered by USPS.  The USPS sucks, from the tedious and confusing forms, to their archaic tracking that in my experience, rarely tracks the package, and often shows up after the item is in my hands.  Twice last year I had stuff delivered after I called and both times the same claim was made, it fell behind something.  Once it was a seal for my diving watch that didn't arrive for a month and week after after I dove and salt water fried my watch.  

    Plus, for me, who is at the end of the UPS delivery line, getting a package at 8pm regularly is just creepy.  Packages after dark rubs me the wrong way.

    I like FedEx and not to sound crass, but trying to track down a package and the reason it wasn't delivered while it's out for delivery seems a little ridiculous.  As others have mentioned, you can go online and arrange to pick it up at their hub, which for me isn't that far out of my way.  But in the case of a computer, during a blizzard storm, seems like waiting an extra day isn't really that much to ask.  And if I had to guess, the guy was probably running behind, because of the storm and just decided to forgo you package that day and that is what set-off the lies behind it, him hiding his willful error.

    Speaking of horrors, my current USPS office is an Ace hardware, which is actually awesome.  No lines, awesome hours of operation, and it's right around the corner.  But the problem is they assigned the new zip code a month before xmas, that was a horror story.  No one knew about the change but the USPS and everything I ordered was hung up in the undeliverable zone.  

    What upset Jeralyn was the lies and the (5.00 / 2) (#48)
    by caseyOR on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 02:28:30 PM EST
    run-around she got from everyone at FedEx she talked with. Had FedEx simply told her the truth to begin with, she would have understood.

    Your comment reads to me like you are criticizing Jeralyn for something she did not say.

    It makes me a little crazy to be told that a package could not be delivered because I was not home when I know I was home all day. Just tell me you got behind schedule or the weather tripped you up or whatever the truth is, but please do not jerk me around.

    Parent

    Agreed. (5.00 / 1) (#56)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:21:53 PM EST
    Look, Schitt happens. For the most part, if the person or company at fault -- FedEx, UPS or the Post Office -- is on the level with me, I'm going to be perfectly fine with it. I can cetainly live with a delayed delivery of a day or two, as long as I know about it so I'm not waiting around needlessly for something that's not coming.

    But please, don't bull$H!+ a bull$H!++er -- or worse still, don't make it out to be somehow our fault when it's really not. Because then, we tend to not be so sympathetic or forgiving when Schitt happens.

    Parent

    My sister overnighted the package to me (5.00 / 1) (#55)
    by shoephone on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:17:10 PM EST
    It was four days late, complete with Fed Ex's lies about why.

    Parent
    FedEx as the King of (none / 0) (#50)
    by Zorba on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 02:58:56 PM EST
    overnight document delivery depends very much on where you live.  A colleague of Mr. Zorba wanted to FedEx an important document to him on Friday, so that it would arrive here on Saturday.  Mr. Zorba agreed to look it over and give his opinion by Sunday PM so that his colleague would be prepared for an important meeting on Monday morning.  And no, he could not have scanned and emailed it, because this was back in the days when we only had dial-up, and getting a massive document such as this over the Web would just not have worked very well, if at all.  And we don't have a Fax machine at home, either.
    Suffice it to say, FedEx swore to the colleague that they would get it here on Saturday.  Only thing is, they don't deliver up here on the mountain on Saturday.  Ever.  Apparently, the local FedEx people did not inform the colleague's FedEx people that there are, indeed, places they don't service on Saturday.
    So Mr. Zorba and his colleague spent a lot of time on the phone on Sunday, hashing over the document as best they could, with the colleague reading and synopsizing the salient points.  We got the document on Monday (too late) and Mr. Zorba suggested to the other guy that he try to get at least some of the "overnight delivery" charge refunded, since it was not, in fact, delivered "overnight," despite their promises.

    Parent
    Well... (none / 0) (#58)
    by ScottW714 on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 04:11:33 PM EST
    ...I don't think, and didn't say, they are infallible, but why did they select them in the first place ?  Because normally they are right on time and when you look at the competition, they are the ones you choose in a crunch.

    IMO they are still the best, not perfect, but when Mr Z needed documents from point A to B and back on a weekend, he didn't choose USPS or UPS.  When Apple needed to ship out a computer, who did they pick ?  

    If they are so horrible why is everyone using them, it sure as hell ain't their low prices.  This is one industry where I would think the market would correct issues very quickly, it certainly held DHL to the flame, and yet all these folks still choose FedEx.

    I would imagine Jeralyn has a well used FedEx account for documents, but since she didn't mention it, we don't know.

    Parent

    It wasn't Mr. Z's choice (none / 0) (#60)
    by Zorba on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 05:22:47 PM EST
    It was his colleague's choice.  And I think that the colleague chose FedEx because they were supposed to be so good about getting overnight documents to their destination "on time."  Just not up here.  ;-)


    Parent
    or course I have (none / 0) (#62)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 07:30:46 PM EST
    a fedex account, but when you receive a gift or the company shipping the product pays the shipping, your account number doesn't enter the picture.

    Parent
    My Point Was... (5.00 / 1) (#67)
    by ScottW714 on Wed Feb 27, 2013 at 08:58:30 AM EST
    ...they have a great track record.  Obviously, it really sucks when something isn't delivered when promised.  But your post is labeled "Companies That Don't Deserve Our Trust", which I thought was excessive.  And unless you are going to cancel your FedEx account, seems like more of frustration post than an actual plea for people not to use FedEx.


    Parent
    FedEx, it was a big one ($750+) and they comped the whole charge. So, I can't really complain.

    My Experience as well (none / 0) (#57)
    by thadjock on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 03:38:08 PM EST
    in the 15 yrs I've had a business account with Fedex and shipped literally thousands of express and ground items, I've only had two overnight envelopes go astray and arrive later than 10am the next business day. They promptly refunded the entire shipping cost, and were very apologetic.

    Maybe I just happen to have a superhero delivery driver, or be serviced by the most efficient fedex terminal in the world, but their performance record has been incredibly high.

    Trust me, the delivery driver isn't intentionally trying to jerk you around if a package doesnt' arrive, he gets paid by the number of deliveries he completes.  

    Parent

    yes fedex did try to (none / 0) (#63)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 07:38:32 PM EST
    jerk me around. They did not attempt to deliver the package as the driver claimed. When I checked the tracking slip and saw they claimed no one was there, I had no idea if they were delivering it to the correct address, if they had the wrong name, or what went wrong. If it was the wrong address, and they tried to redeliver it, they'd have no better luck and eventually it would be returned to Apple. And I just knew it wasn't true, which my office confirmed because the fedex guy had been there to deliver packages for others. And then for the driver to tell my office when they tracked him down that my suite number wasn't on the label so they didn't know who to deliver it to was another lie.

    They delivered it at 8:30 a.m. this morning. Hopefully, if Fedex gets wind of this thread, they will instruct their drivers not to make stuff up.

    Parent

    Tom Petty weighs in: (none / 0) (#64)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Feb 26, 2013 at 10:10:47 PM EST