Has anyone delivered for the Chronicle (or know someone who did) (Houston: apartments, school) - Texas (TX) - City-Data Forum

MvComedy · 08-17-2012, 03:42 PM

I'm curious to know what hours you had to work, when did the paper truck show up, and how did they pay you (hourly or a monthly check based on route customers).

cheryjohns · 08-17-2012, 05:07 PM

Before I worked in advertising there, I worked in marketing - thus exposed to circulation management. From my understanding, those carriers worked from before midnight until they finished their route, usually in the 4AM zone. They were paid by the distributor for that area, who limited route size to try to control amount of customer complaints - and the individual route didn't pay all that much. The distributors appeared to continually go through carriers, from the complaints of managers. It appeared to be a difficult job with little reward. Management blamed the distributors for not paying the carriers enough - and distributors blamed management for not giving them enough to pay the carriers better.

bloodwings19 · 08-22-2012, 03:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MvComedy

I'm curious to know what hours you had to work, when did the paper truck show up, and how did they pay you (hourly or a monthly check based on route customers).

A tough job, toughest is when there is adverse weather condition, you still have to go out. I've met some of them because my ride to work is around the same time newspapers are being delivered (around 4am). Most of them can't speak english, or doesn't even know how to speak it. I rarely see them smile, so it must not be a rewarding job. I find it odd that the local distributor keeps sending me billing even though I'm prepaid until I cancelled.

jtothemak · 08-22-2012, 08:02 AM

Do people even still get the paper anymore? Heck I even know some old school avid newspaper readers and none of them even get the paper anymore.

HoustonRonnie · 08-22-2012, 08:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jtothemak

Do people even still get the paper anymore? Heck I even know some old school avid newspaper readers and none of them even get the paper anymore.

Apparently, circulation is on the upswing at the moment. But take that with a grain of salt because it fell dramatically from 2008 - 2010.

Chronicle shows strong circulation growth - Houston Chronicle

crone · 08-22-2012, 04:52 PM

DH was so distressed at not getting his morning paper and Sunday Times he applied for a job throwing papers. He figured he'd at least get his paper on time. They never called him. Guess they don't want old poops or guys with 2 Masters.

My son threw the Chronicle when it was the PM paper. He quit the day the distributors helper threw up all over the papers on a Saturday night and left them on our porch to be delivered. I called his boss and told him those papers were not going in my car and my kid was not throwing them to people. They thought I was unreasonable.

cheryjohns · 08-22-2012, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HoustonRonnie

Apparently, circulation is on the upswing at the moment. But take that with a grain of salt because it fell dramatically from 2008 - 2010.

Chronicle shows strong circulation growth - Houston Chronicle

That "strong" figure is down about 150,000 - $175,000 from the late 90's, while our population zoomed upwards.

davidrod8 · 08-23-2012, 07:34 AM

We were talking about the future of newspapers yesterday, whether they will disappear in print and only remain digital... I for one love the chronicle's app on the ipad... the newspaper seems like old news, so when i do get on sundays, it's never for the news...

To answer the Op question... I never delivered the chronicle, but when I first moved here in the 90s I helped a friend deliver one of those weekly newspapers once a week and the yellow pages...

Weekly newspaper was messy... if I'm not mistaken, he had to go pick them up (about 1000 copies I believe) rolled them up and put it in bags (which got your hands really dirty with ink) throw them in your back seat and them go do your route... I think he used to get paid somewhere around $80-$100... but you had to put the car, gas, etc...

Yellow pages also paid by route, you needed a trailer, and those ones you couldn't just throw, you had to walk them to the front doors... I think the paid about the same, but they were very heavy!

MvComedy · 08-23-2012, 08:41 AM

Thanks for the input, everyone. Sounds like delivering papers is not for me.

oceangaia · 08-23-2012, 09:05 AM

I delivered for the Chron about 20 years ago so maybe it's all changed but the papers would be picked up at a warehouse. There were a dozen or so other carriers picking up there and they had bags and tying machines. You got to know the others and it was a nice camaraderie. I'd get there about 4am, bag it all up and chat a bit and be gone by 4:30 and done w the route by 6am or so, depending on weather. Plenty of time to shower and go to my day job. Sundays took an hour or so longer. Most of the route was thrown from the car but there were apartments that had to be walked.

I made about $500/month and it was decent supplemental income and I kinda liked the solitude on the route. But it's a lot of wear and tear on the car. I had a beater so I didn't care so much. The ink gets everything black.