Package delivery giant UPS and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union have reached a tentative labor agreement on a five-year agreement that would cover Teamsters-represented UPS employees in small package roles, averting a potential strike. The agreement, which is subject to ratification, came after months of collective bargaining talks.
UPS’s goal has been to reward the company’s employees for their contributions to its success while enabling the business to remain flexible to meet its customers’ needs, according to the company. UPS believes that each of these goals have been met in the new agreement.
Negotiations continue on a number of supplemental agreements that cover local work rules as well as the separate agreement that covers about 11,000 Teamsters-represented employees in the UPS Freight network.
Specifics in the agreement highlighted by the Teamsters include:
Article 22 Part Time Employees: The committee increased the number of full-time opportunities for the part-time members. The committee has also made significant improvements on the part-time wage structure and start rate. The current four-year wage progression ($10.00 to $12.50 over four years) has been eliminated. Instead, there will be a start rate that increases significantly in each year of the contract, from $13.00 on August 1, 2018, reaching $15.50 on August 1, 2022. The two-tier wage structure has been eliminated as well; all part-time employees hired after August 1, 2018 will make the new higher start rate. The new General Wage Increases total $4.15 over the five-year Agreement with no split wage increases. Existing part time employees will receive the General Wage Increases and make no less than the new start rate.
Article 34 Health & Welfare and Pension: Protecting the health & welfare and pension was a top priority for the members. The committee has negotiated substantial increases to the employer contributions to the various benefit funds, and increased pension benefits under the part-time UPS Pension Plan and the full-time UPS/IBT Pension Plan.
Article 41 Full-Time Employees: Significant increases to the full-time progression rates and general wage increases have been tentatively agreed to, totaling $4.15 over the life of the Agreement. A new classification of full-time combination driver starting at $20.50 and reaching a top rate of $34.79 by August 1, 2022. This provision will help to resolve several membership concerns, including Saturday and Sunday delivery, excessive forced overtime, time off, create additional high paying, full-time opportunities for part-time employees and provide thousands of additional contributors to our Teamster pension funds.
Article 43 Premium Services: There is a significant increase to the new hire progression for sleeper teams in Article 43. Mileage rates that far surpass any rates in the industry have been tentatively agreed to. In addition, the National Committee has successfully negotiated a provision to pull many loads that are currently moved by the railroad off of the rails and move those loads to newly created sleeper teams, resulting in at least 2000 new full-time jobs for the members. Sleeper team jobs are the highest paying jobs in the bargaining unit. This will also open up more full-time opportunities for part-time employees as full-time employees fill these jobs, creating full-time openings.
There is a meeting scheduled for July 9–12 for any Supplemental Agreements that remain unresolved. Negotiations continue on a number of supplemental agreements that cover local work rules as well as the separate agreement that covers about 11,000 Teamsters-represented employees in the UPS Freight network.
