07-13-2009 KC STAR CARRIERS SUFFERING OVER NEW RULES Being a newspaper carrier has never been an easy job. Ask anyone who has ever had to deliver---and attempt to collect---on a newspaper route and they will spend hours telling horror stories. Today most newspaper deliveries are done via large motor routes. Dedicated folks have to get up in the middle of the night and deliver newspapers in the dark while trying to keep accurate records of customers on vacation, cancellations, new customers, etc. In an effort to cut expenses, the Kansas City Star has focused cost-cutting efforts on carriers that is now making the job even more difficult. As we reported in March (below) carriers now get routinely penalized for missed deliveries and a host of other incidents that are often out of their control. Instead of making a few cents on a delivery they now get penalized $5 for missed deliveries, wet papers and a host of other issues. A few months ago the Star decided to charge customers 25 cents extra per week if they wanted the newspaper's TV guide (which used to be included with the paper). While the decision seemed perplexing at the time (will customers in the future have to pay extra for sports, comics, headlines, etc.?), it has been disastrous for carriers. Not only is the TV guide a logistical nightmare regarding who receives it or not, and which papers should contain it, but for certain deliveries (such as condos and apartment complexes) it is very difficult to make sure only those who paid the 25 cents get the guide. If a customer complains the carrier can get penalized $5. The entire pay-for-your-TV Guide program did not seem like a great revenue-generating idea when it was introduced and now it seems to be hurting some hard-working, dedicated folks who are trying to make a living in challenging times. It might be a good idea for Kansas City's leading newspaper to re-evaluate its TV guide program.
07-13-2009 FEEDBACK: "I find these practices to be despicable. I have great regard for the carriers and the challenges they face in making sure that the newspaper gets delivered every day. (I live on the third floor of an apartment building without an elevator, and it's in front of my door every morning!) "I hope every customer realizes how hard these men and women work and try to make sure the carriers don't get penalized by The Star's short-sighted practices. BTW, I paid for a one-year subscription for The Star back in January, which included a TV section, such as it was. Now they're trying to make me pay for something I've already paid for? Surprise, surprise..."
Some of the penalties being implemented on newspaper carriers.
03-04-2009/03-05-2009 NEWSPAPER DELIVERY DRIVERS PENALIZED Being a newspaper delivery person is a tough, 365-day-a-year job. Long, lousy early-morning hours of trying to find the right address in dark, inclement weather, keeping track of numerous starts and stops for vacations, adding new customers, keeping papers dry, etc., all add up to a difficult line of work. As if the job isn't difficult enough, now the KC Star and other newspapers are implementing tough new guidelines for delivery folks that will severely penalize them for any complaints---whether valid or not. The complaints can also erase potential incentive bonuses (see below). The Kansas City Star will be able to deduct up to $5 per complaint from its newspaper delivery agents/carriers due to new terms being imposed on them. It also will impact delivery of Investors Business Daily, Financial Times, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Barron's and the Olathe Daily News. Carriers today make about 8-10 cents per delivery. However, the new charges can result in a $5 penalty as a result of an "Aggravated Customer," "Wet Paper," "Not Started," "Not Stopped" and other instances. "This is a blatant attempt to hurt those at the bottom end that are still suffering from the effects of last summer's high fuel prices," said a carrier who wants to remain anonymous. "Many carriers have left, but many cannot afford to." According to the carrier, a third party company was created to act as a go-between for The Star and several other financial papers (and most recently the USA Today). These other papers were being delivered by carriers that were making as much as 70 cents per daily copy, however, they are now delivered by The Star carriers for the same rate that they make for delivering The Star. These kinds of policies (and layoffs) have gone into effect since McClatchy Company bought out Knight Ridder (including the Star) in 2006. Customer service was initially outsourced to South Carolina and then the Philippines, which meant carriers could not let customers know of things like vehicle problems for bad weather. ( Finance and Ad Services went to India.) "Please, if you can, try to work directly with your carrier," says the carrier. "Remember they are out there in the middle of the night, often before the plow and salt trucks get to work. They also are the ones calling the police if they notice anything suspicious at 3 a.m."
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