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340,000 Teamsters to rally ahead of labor negotiations with UPS

April 12, 2023

More than 340,000 UPS delivery drivers and warehouse workers are prepared to walk off the job if the shipping giant fails to provide a “fair and equitable agreement,” with their Teamsters union.

Rallies with representatives from 176 Teamster locals are being held this week throughout the U.S. ahead of the union’s national bargaining sessions with UPS. Teamsters Local 952 will rally Saturday, April 15 at its Orange headquarters.

Negotiations begin Monday, April 17, for the largest private-sector collective bargaining unit in North America. Their five-year labor contract expires July 31.

The Teamsters are seeking a contract that guarantees:

Higher pay for all workers
More full-time job opportunities
An end to forced overtime
Elimination of a two-tier wage system
Protection from heat and other workplace hazards

“We’re telling (UPS) we want a fair contract for our members,” said Eric Jimenez, secretary-treasurer for Local 952. “We’re asking everyone to show up. Let’s show this company we’re united and we’re going to stand together in this fight.”

Jimenez said the Teamsters hope to avoid a walkout. But if the two sides can’t reach a livable agreement, they’ll have no choice.

“We will put this country on strike, and we will shut down UPS,” he said Tuesday.

The union has several sticking points. One is the “22.4,” named after a 2018 contract provision that created a tier of lower-paid full-time workers, according to Jacobin, a publication that tracks politics, economics and culture.

The average annual pay for a UPS driver is $75,000 to $80,000 in California — one of the rare jobs that offer a livable wage, pension and benefits without requiring a college degree. Newer drivers in the 22.4 category do the same work as more senior drivers, Jimenez said, but their hourly pay falls $6 to $7 below that of their senior counterparts.

Newer drivers also have less control over their work schedules, which has led to high turnover.

UPS employees working in the company’s distribution centers earn far less, with many part-time workers earning as little as $15.50 an hour. The Teamsters want to hike that starting wage above $20 an hour.

“Part-time workers make up 65% of our workforce at UPS, but they only work an average of 3 ½ hours a day,” Jimenez said. “These are people who work in warehouses unloading trucks and trailers in hot weather. They could go work at TGI Fridays and make as much — plus, there’d be air conditioning.”

The Teamsters have taken issue with the lack of air conditioning in full-time drivers’ vehicles, as well as forced overtime, including six-day work weeks.

“We’ve always known there’s a lot of overtime during the Christmas season where employees will often work 60 hours a week,” Jimenez said. “But since the pandemic arrived Christmas season has turned into a forever season.”

Saturday’s rally is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. at Local 952, 140 S. Marks Way, Orange, and will be live-streamed on Facebook.

The national contract negotiations come just months after UPS reported record profits of more than $100 billion and a $19 million annual salary for UPS CEO Carol Tome.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.2 million workers in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico.

Orange County Register

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340,000 Teamsters to rally ahead of labor negotiations with UPS

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