Unionized workers employed by UPS have voted overwhelmingly in favor of a potential strike if the company and Teamsters are unable to reach a contract agreement prior to the expiration of their current contract next month.
The Teamsters announced that 97% of workers voted in favor of authorisation for a strike, a move intended to give the union greater leverage in ongoing negotiations. However, the vote does not guarantee that a strike will occur in the near future.
Sean O’Brien, General President of the Teamsters, stated in a prepared statement that “if this multibillion-dollar corporation fails to deliver on the contract that our hardworking members deserve, UPS will be striking itself.”
He further emphasized the importance of holding UPS accountable, stressing that the strongest leverage that members have is their labor and that they are prepared to withhold it in order to ensure the company acts accordingly.
The Teamsters currently represent around 340,000 UPS employees, who constitute over half of the company’s total workforce, making it the largest private-sector contract in North America.
If a strike does occur, it will be the first since 185,000 workers went on strike for 15 days twenty-five years ago, which severely impacted the company’s operations.
UPS has grown significantly since the 1996 strike and is now even more crucial to the US economy. According to the company, it delivers approximately 6% of the country’s gross domestic product, meaning that a potential strike could have substantial impacts on the overall economy.
Despite the Teamsters’ strike authorization, UPS stated in a prepared statement that it would not affect their current operations.
Despite the strike authorization, UPS has emphasized that authorization votes are normal measures that occur during union negotiations.
The company reiterated that they are still making progress on key issues and remained confident in reaching an agreement that benefits employees, the Teamsters, customers, and the company. UPS workers are still dissatisfied with the existing contract, which they believe was imposed upon them due to a technicality by prior union leadership in 2018.
The current contract establishes two categories of workers with differing benefits, hours, and pay scales, a situation that the union seeks to eliminate.
UPS continues to stress that the strike authorization vote is a normal part of union negotiations and should not negatively affect the company’s operations.
The company expressed confidence in reaching an agreement that is beneficial to all parties involved, including employees, the Teamsters, customers, and the company. However, UPS workers feel frustrated with the current contract, which they believe was put in place based on a technicality by prior union leadership in 2018.
The workers are displeased with the two-tier pay system and varying benefits offered under the current contract, and are seeking to negotiate a better deal.
On Tuesday, both the union and the company confirmed that they had reached a tentative agreement to equip more of UPS’s trucks with air conditioning. As per the agreement, UPS has pledged to add air conditioning to all small delivery vehicles purchased in the United States after January 1, 2024.
However, these changes will not be extended to the vehicles that are already in operation, at least not yet. Instead, the union has stated that two fans will be installed in all vehicles once a new contract is ratified.
Additionally, UPS has agreed to add a heat shield to some of its vehicles and air vents to all cars within 18 months of the new contract. Apparently, this agreement will see about 95% of the existing US package delivery fleet of UPS being enhanced.
Kara Deniz, who is a spokesperson for the Teamsters, stated that there have been over two dozen tentative agreements that have been reached with UPS since the negotiations began in April. The current contract is set to expire on July 31.
According to Pitney Bowes, a global shipping and logistics firm, UPS delivers roughly 25 million packages per day, which accounts for about a quarter of all U.S. parcel volume.
This number is approximately 10 million more packages than the company delivered daily in the years prior to the pandemic.
Since the pandemic began in 2020, UPS has experienced increased profitability as more Americans rely on home delivery services. In fact, the company’s annual profits in the last two years have been nearly three times greater than they were pre-pandemic.
In 2022, UPS returned about $8.6 billion to shareholders through dividends and stock buybacks, and it expects to dole out another $8.4 billion this year.
The Teamsters assert that the significant profit growth experienced by UPS is largely attributable to the hard work of the company’s drivers and warehouse workers, who transport a wide range of goods including heavy items like bags of dog food and cases of wine, as well as essential items like prescriptions.
The contentious negotiations between the Teamsters and UPS over the current contract were a driving force behind union members rejecting a potential successor to longtime union leader James Hoffa. Workers instead chose Sean O’Brien, who is committed to fighting for the Teamsters’ contract demands with UPS.
If the union is successful in achieving their demands from UPS, it could have far-reaching implications for organized labor beyond the company.
The negotiations between the Teamsters and UPS have been highly contentious, leading union members to reject a potential successor to longtime union head James Hoffa. Instead, they selected Sean O’Brien, who is determined to continue fighting for the Teamsters’ contract demands with UPS.
If the union is successful in getting their demands met by UPS, it could have significant effects on labor organizations beyond the company. Other unions may be emboldened to push for better contracts and working conditions, while businesses may need to reassess their labor practices in light of increased union activism.