I worked trailers for UPS back in the day and from the sounds of things from the drivers is was just as hectic. I heard that you don't take a lunch break until about 2 years in once you've learned all the ins and outs of a route.
FedEx is non-union. They spend an insane amount of money marketing themselves as a good employer (all that, "Truck driver to pilot" bullshit).
I've have friends who were freight truck drivers talk about it. A lot of young kids get sucked up into non-union shops and are told about how much better it is; how they shouldn't want a union. Most of the unionised freight companies do pay better though; or if they don't, they make up for it with more benefits and lower road time.
I don't believe all FedEx drivers have to supply their own trucks but most freight oth drivers do. They also work pretty strict and tight deadlines.
Most delivery services in general work their employees hard. An ex of mine drove for different food and drink vendors driving truck doing ltl to grocery stores and gas stations and they would consistently exceed maximum hours cdl drivers are allowed to work.
> and they would consistently exceed maximum hours cdl drivers are allowed to work
Just a reminder, there exists no maximum number of hours CDL holders may work, they just can't drive after a certain number of hours without a sleep break. Many truckers will operate in such a manner that they drive to the destination legally, reach their max allowable hours driving upon arrival, and then continue working several more hours unloading. Grocery warehouses are notorious for this.
It's an important distinction because if you are a local driver with a 'day cab', you can't exactly take your sleep break in the truck and would be more likely to break the law to drive the truck back home (or the company yard). An 'over the road' driver has a sleeper berth and can take a proper break most anywhere they can legally park.
I did many FedEx loads as an over the road driver and I found them to be good runs. Many were overnight runs from one airport to another and I definitely had enough time, it wasn't as if I had to skip breaks or hurry. And the FedEx staff and load/unload procedures were very organised and easy. FedEx loads were seen as desirable and hassle-free.
